I am here for good, darling
by Amber.Is.Gawd
Summary: Sequel to Love me, Don't leave me. Edward finally comes back to Amestris after four years. Amestris hadn't changed, but his loved ones had. And Edward's in for a big surprise when he visits his long lost lover. WinxEd. Smut warning.
1. Back in Amestris

What's up guys? Long time no see, huh? XD

It's Amber with a sequel to Love me, Don't leave me.

I read through it the other day, and was like, "Jesus Christ, what a piece of shit!" Ahaha.

Hopefully this story will be better than that one. If you didn't get the chance already, please read through Love me, Don't leave me. I'm not sure if you'll understand this story.

Also, this story is in replace of Shambala.

Well, enjoy! Lemons coming in upcoming chapters. :]

* * *

I am Here for Good, Darling

Chapter one

Edward Elric leaned his head against the frigid, icy window of the train. He stared through his dull, listless gold eyes at the snow falling from the sky in the opposite direction of the train, covering the earth with white. His apathetic face wasn't reflecting what he was feeling. It was hard to explain how Edward felt. He didn't know how he should feel. After four years, he was finally seeing his family, and everything else he left back in the world of Amestris. It wasn't even that he had just been gone, it was the fact that he had been away from his family and friends for four years without so much as a phone call or a letter.

_Christ. They probably think I'm dead..._

Amestris smelt different. It smelt clean, unlike Germany, which smelt like burning bodies and trash. It was a pleasant, yet nostalgic change, and it was as if once he woke up in Amestris, all of his childhood and teen years came back to his memory. What he did lose was his memory of how he had gotten back to his old world in the first place. Ed didn't recall a gate, a transmutation circle, or anything that would allow him back to his home. The last thing he remembered was walking into his shoddy apartment after a long day at the lab with Alphons. After that, Edward woke up on rubble in a familiar place that he couldn't quite put finger on. It took about two days to get on track with Amestris. Edward's goal now was to get back to his loved ones. They probably hated him, but Edward was going to be selfish. They had probably gotten over his death by now and everyone's life had gone on, but now Ed was coming to ruin it. He didn't care. Ed thought about them every goddamn day he was in Germany.

He thought about her the most.

Ed wanted to see her so bad. It killed him that he couldn't even remember her voice. Or how smooth her skin was. All Ed could remember was her gorgeous face, with that smile and those dazzling blue eyes. He only had memories. No photographs. No letters.

Edward's eyes closed as he listened to the fast clicking of the train rolling over it's tracks.

_Hurry...Please..._

It was always like this every single time Edward visited Risembool. Nothing had changed. There were fields and fields of snow, a long dirt road, and no new buildings. In the distance, the roof of a yellow house poked up out of a small hill. There was a small lump in Edward's throat that he just couldn't seem to swallow. Anxiety. He was nervous. Of course it was only natural that he was.

Ed stood there, his only real foot growing numb in the snow. It took him a while to get going, her face the only motivation that kept him going. That kept him alive. This was the moment he had dreamed about almost every night as he slept in the brick he considered a bed. There was no way in hell he was going to turn back now. He limped toward the yellow home, a look of discomfort settled on his face every time he took a step.

Knocking on a door had never been so difficult. Ed had to have had his fist raised to the door for five minutes before actually banging against it. It was sunrise at the moment. Someone had to have been up. Especially Pinako, if she was still around. But, an unexpected person had answered the door instead. The first name that popped into Ed's head was "Noah", but the thought escaped him, and he gave a tired smile.

"Rose." It was his greeting to her.

Rose's greeting Edward was a gasp, followed by a shaky, "Ed!".

"Long time no-" Edward began, but paused when Rose about-faced and made her way toward the kitchen. He limped after her, cringing with pain every time he took a quick step toward her. In the kitchen, Rose had the phone up to her ear, waiting for a response. Finally, one came.

"Hello?"

"Winry? Winry! Y-"

Edward cut her off by snatching the phone and slamming it down on the receiver. Rose slammed her hand on the counter before yelling, "Just what the hell are you doing? She needs to know!"

Ed was staring down at the flowered tiles of the kitchen floor, waiting for his heartbeat to return to normal. He brought his eyes back up to the brunette, his face had an expression of penitence.

"Not yet. I can't face her yet."


	2. Finding you

Haha, I am just terrible at checking the chapter before submitting it.

And I'm even worse at keeping track with my stories. I'll try not to keep you waiting so long between updates!

By the way, tell me if any of you have a Gaiaonline account, I'd love to add you. :]

Anyway, enjoy the chapter.

* * *

I am Here for Good, Darling

Chapter two

Edward Elric knew it was coming. He already saw this situation happening, like déjà vu. Alphonse, all teary eyed, Pinako with a sort of amused expression smothered on her old, wrinkly face, and Rose, angry and flustered, all surrounding the twenty-two year old Ed, demanding answers. Edward couldn't really cop and attitude about either. Not that he had it in him anymore.

"Where were you, brother?"

"Why are you dressed so oddly, and what is with this cruddy automail, anyway?"

"Is there a reason why you haven't called or written? I want answers, Ed."

It wasn't hard for Ed to put on a fake grin, he had been doing it for a couple of years now. "It's a long story guys. I don't really know how to answer them right now." Edward spoke, looking up at the three, but past them, as if gazing into the wall. He knew how to answer the questions, actually. But, he had a feeling only Al would have an idea of what he was talking about.

After seeing his brother's human body, Edward's spirit lifted a lot. Getting Al's body back to normal was the biggest priority back during his teenage years, after all. But while that weight was lifted off of Ed's shoulders, there was still an itch he couldn't seem to scratch.

"So, why don't you want to talk to Winry again?" Rose demanded.

It was as if the name Winry snapped Ed's attention to Rose, not past her.

"Where is she?" Ed asked.

"Central." Rose replied.

"Why?"

"She was offered very good work there." Pinako answered. Edward could already tell that Pinako didn't approve of him around her granddaughter. Like he cared.

"Listen, Pinako. Is there any way you could fit on a spare for the time being? I want to leave before sunset." His eyes focused on the ground, and his really hand fiddling with his unkempt, prosthetic hand. Al sucked in a breath a few times, ready to object to Edward's leaving so soon, but he understood, of course.

Pinako took a long drag on her pipe before exhaling the smoke over Ed's head. "Alright, get over here, pipsqueak."

Ed couldn't even react to the short joke. It wasn't in him anymore.

* * *

The pain in his leg was immediately lifted once the old woman replaced his homemade automail with a spare, wooden one. The old automail was such a piece of crap, she couldn't even recycle it into the "scraps" pile.

The only observational difference you could make between the two automail legs was the lack of limp in Ed's walk. He wore long, black socks under his khaki pants and he wore artificial skin over his right arm. Automail in Germany was often frowned upon, but it was more common in Amestris.

With that thought on his mind, Ed didn't feel as self-conscious as he took the train to central. The worst part of the train ride was that he had to feel that anxiety all over again. His heart was beating so fast in his chest, he felt as though he could puke it up. Edward was excited, of course, and all the delay was making the anticipation grow.

* * *

It was nighttime by the time Ed had reached Central, the moon was hanging in the clear, black sky. It's rays streamed over the iced roads, making them look glossy. In one hand, Ed held a suitcase, filled with his clothes and some money, and in the other, a small piece of paper with an address scribbled on it. The city had changed, but Ed could manage. He was filled with determination.

* * *

Ed was off the train around 10:45pm. He found himself in the doorway of a rather large mansion around 3:10am. He stood there, contemplating whether to knock or not. Squinting into the window, Ed spotted a workshop with wrenches and various other tools scattered.

_Yeah. Definitely Winry's place._

He dug underneath the typical welcome mat, finding a small spare key that allowed him to enter the house. The first thing Edward noticed was how clean, yet unused the home looked, as if no one had lived there for a while. Except for the tools, of course.

Edward began to make his way upstairs slowly and cautiously, until he reached the top step, where a hallway full of doors stretched out in front of him.

And behind one of those doors slept his past, present and future.

* * *

Short chapter, I know.

Read and review please.


	3. Everything's not okay

Gosh, I need to proofread my chapters more closely.

Haha.

But anyway, I would love to get more reviews. They're what keeps me writing, and updating quicker.

Enjoy this third chapter!

* * *

I'm Here for Good, Darling

Chapter 3

Winry awoke to the sound of doors opening, a pause, and then shutting. It was as if someone was trying to find something or someone in a certain room. She sat up in bed rubbing her eyes with the palm of her hand. Confident that no one in the right mind would even consider breaking into the second lieutenant's house, especially with the close friendships she shared with the higher-ups, Winry began wondering who would visit her home at 3:15 in the morning. Russel? A drunken Roy? Both were not too aberrant, and were welcome into her home. Well, at least Russel was.

Winry sat in bed, wanting to avoid leaving her warm covers to walk across the chilly room to open the door. She considered waiting for her unknown visitor to just discover her, but that was until she heard a rather unfamiliar voice grumble as soon as the footsteps appeared in front of her door. She heard a hopeless,

"_I guess she's not here..."_

What was that about? He hadn't even checked all of the rooms yet.

But it was at that moment that Winry realized that both Roy and Russel knew where her room was. With curiosity to keep her warm, Winry arose from her bed, her white nightgown falling to her knees. She swallowed, hard, as she approached the door, realizing now that this could very well be an intruder.

Her feet were silent, and there wasn't the slightest sound as she neared the door. She could feel the strangers presence on the other side. Winry didn't have a gun in her room, and the only thing she did have that she considered a weapon was the wrench that she slept with almost every night that she was home and alone. That was across the room, now.

She was probably overreacting over the matter. Who would even think about breaking into her home? She was best friends with the Fuhrer for God's sake.

It was at that thought that Winry built up the courage to open the door.

He turned. She gasped.

At first she stood there, trying figure out if she was still asleep or just hallucinating. It just _had_ to be one of the two. Her chest tightened and her mouth became unbearably dry. Winry was speechless. Thoughtless, even. What could she think?

Edward Elric was standing before her after four terribly painful years. _Four_.

Her chest grew even tighter and she felt as though she could vomit. But instead, Edward's face grew into a blur. Within seconds, everything went dark, and Ed was gone once again.

* * *

With each room that Ed entered and found empty, the more he lost his confidence. The anxiety was killing him. He needed to at least lay his eyes on her within the next few minutes. The scent of her house wasn't enough. Although, it smelt distinctly like how he remembered. She had to be in the house. She just had to.

By the time he had reached the fifth room with no success, he let out an, "I guess she's not here", and stood there, in front of a door, staring at the ground. The sound of the doorknob turning right before him gave Ed a start and caused him to freeze.

She stood there with her soft golden hair, her wide baby blue eyes, and her white nightgown. Like an angel. And she fell into his arms. Edward caught her with ease.

* * *

Her baby blue fluttered open, her vision unfocused and taking it's time to adjust to the sunlight pouring into the room. Soon, the ceiling came into focus.

It took her a while to remember what actually happened last night. It felt as though it was a dream, and she couldn't think of whether she would consider it a nightmare or not.

Next to her bed, and terribly close, the sound of someone clearing their throat hit her ear. Winry's head snapped toward the blonde man sitting in a chair next to her bed.

Edward gave Winry a tired smile. "Good morning, beautiful."

Winry's face turned aghast and she stared into his listless, dull golden eyes. Her tears warmed her cheeks as she leaped at Edward, causing him to almost lose balance in his chair.

She embraced him tightly, as if he could disappear into nothing. Again. And she sobbed and sobbed before leaning back to give her enough room to beat her fists on his chest.

"You idiot! Idiot, idiot, idiot!" Winry sobbed, "W-where have you been? You have no idea what I've been through! You weren't here when I needed you most, y-you fucking idiot!"

She looked up into his eyes, his eyes now filled with an abundance of grief and remorse.

"O-oh, Edward..." Her voice cracked as she buried her face into his shoulder. Ed could feel her tears soaking through his white undershirt. He had his hand on her back, rubbing her spine soothingly, and he rested his cheek on the top of her head.

"Shh, Winry...It's all alright now."

"N-no, Edward. It's really not."

* * *

Read and review.

No flames, please and thank you.

Don't worry, updates will be flying at you! :]


	4. I'm sorry, Winry

Keep the reviews coming

and enjoy this chapter.

:]

* * *

I am Here for Good, Darling

Chapter 4

Edward didn't know what to expect. He guessed deep down inside that he wanted to come back to Winry, and have a blissful and romantic life with her without a care in the world. Of course that wasn't going to happen. It was too easy.

It took a while before Winry calmed down, her nose red and eyes puffy. Ed really wanted to believe that they were only tears of joy, but he sensed that she was troubled with his homecoming.

He was afraid to ask questions.

All Edward wanted was this moment to be perfect, like he had dreamed and daydreamed. Everyday, for the past painful years he spent in Germany. He understood that she was upset with him for being away so long without any kind of contact, but damn it.

He just wanted to see her smile. He wanted her to be happy that he was home.

* * *

The two were in the kitchen now, Winry's face back to it's original peachy color, though her eyes were still swollen.

"Would you like something to eat? Drink?" She avoided making eye contact with him, or even looking at him altogether. Instead, she glanced at the clock. Almost one in the afternoon. Her heart was beating.

_Any minute, now._

"Coffee. Black. No milk." Edward replied, leaning back against the counter. He watched her move with interest. Her actions were odd, and she refused to even spare him a glance. All she did was glance at the clock on the wall, as if she was expecting something.

"Coffee, really?" She asked in a gently surprised tone. "Didn't think you would ever like coffee."

"Yeah, I've grown to like it these past couple of years." Ed turned his gaze out the window and at the cloudy sky before he felt Winry press a mug against his chest. He looked into her deep blue eyes, which reminded him of crystal-clear water when looking at them close up. And the two adults were close.

Ed took the cup by the handle with his right hand without taking his eyes off hers. With his left hand, Edward reached up, placing a hand on her warm cheek and stroking her skin with his thumb. His heart beat began to speed up, and Winry's heart matched it's pace. She bit her bottom lip.

The two stood like that for a moment before Ed decided to speak.

"God, you're beautiful. Things haven't changed at all." He spoke in a tender, soft tone. It was supposed to be a sweet, caring comment, but Winry seemed to take it differently.

"No, you're wrong, Edward." She pulled away and stepping backwards. "That is so like you," Winry scoffed, "You can't just come back here after four years and thing everything is okay!"

Edward looked down and watched the steam from his coffee dance in front of his eyes. "Why not?" He asked in a disappointed voice. His dreams of that perfect reunion with his lover were gone. He swallowed, hard.

"Because-" Winry slammed her palm down on the kitchen counter, but was interrupted when the front door flung open. She glanced at Edward, whose head shot up with curiosity, before she turned to the kitchen entry way.

Ed lifted an eyebrow and cocked his head to the side, watching the entryway also, hearing the footsteps near. Winry stood there, fiddling with the bottom of her shirt.

Ed had to focus his attention downward as the figure passed through the doorway. It was small. _She_ was small. A little blonde girl, around the age of four. Her lemony yellow hair was up in messy pigtails which were held together by small pink bows, her eyes were as blue as the small overalls she was wearing over a long-sleeved pink shirt. Adorable. So fucking adorable. She even had the rosy cheeks Ed once had as a little boy.

"Mama! I'm home!" The child's high voice boomed into the silence, her smile wide and her cheeks glowing even pinker.

Behind Winry was the sound of a gasp and Ed's mug hitting the floor, shattering, black coffee splattering everywhere.

Winry smiled.

"I know, baby!" She smiled, holding her arms out to the now inquiring child observing the strange man who had just made a mess of the kitchen.

The child quickly ran into Winry's arms, giving out a loud, "I missed you!" as she was risen up.

She turned with the child in her arms to Edward, who had a look of terror plastered on his face. He looked as though he could break down any second. He looked as if he was about to be murdered.

But this was life.

If Winry didn't do this quick, she was afraid Edward would break into tears right there. "Elizabeth, we have a very special guest staying at our house," She explained, slowly approaching Ed with the child in her arms. Edward attempted backing up, his body quivering, but the counter behind him kept him from escaping. "Baby, could you say hello to Mister Edward?"

The young Elizabeth put on a horribly cute smile before extending her hand out to Edward. "Hello, my name is Elizabeth Elric. But you can call me Liz. Nice to meet you." He leaned back quickly from the tiny hand, as if it were a knife. Elizabeth gave him a look of curiosity before giggling and patting her hand on Ed's cheek. "Mama, Mister Edward is funny!" She exclaimed to her mother with amusement.

Winry gave Liz a sweet smile for nodding and kissing her cheek. "Okay, honey, why don't you run up to your room and do your homework?"

The child did as she was told and climbed down from her mother's arms, bouncing out of the kitchen.

Edward still stood there, holding his position and facial expression like a statue before slowly sliding down against the counter until he was sitting down.

He finally realized why things couldn't go back to the way they were. Ed realized what Winry meant when she said that he wasn't there when she needed him the most.

Winry watched him as he buried his face into his hands. She gave him a sympathetic smiled as she knelled down in front of him, placing a hand on the top of his head. He leaned forward, wrapping his arms around her torso tightly and tucking his face into the side of her neck.

"I'm sorry, Winry."

* * *

Review, review, review!

:]


	5. Familiar feelings

Hello.

Thanks to all the reviewers!

Keep the reviews coming and I'll keep the updates coming.

;]

Enjoy!

* * *

I am Here for Good, Darling

Chapter 5

Edward could recall the last time he did this. It was about three or four years since he acted this way.

The young blond man laid in bed, his limbs sprawled out and his prosthetic arm hanging over the edge of the mattress. His long blond hair was spread out loosely over the white pillow he had his head planted in, and his eyes gazed over the wall. Ed's expression was pensive and he had a hollow look in his eyes. He had been acting this way for two days now. He refused to eat or talk to anyone.

It was just the aftershock.

So much for the perfect reunion he had so hopefully dreamed about. He could only find it humorous when he thought about when he was on the train and worrying over whether his family and friends would be upset with him. That was nothing. The thought of having a child when returned to Amestris never crossed his mind. Ed had no idea how he should respond to this bombshell.

_Maybe I should have just stayed in Germany._

Ed groaned at this thought, closing his eyes and burying his face into his pillow.

Of course he knew that anything would be better than staying in Germany. Ed couldn't even bear thinking about leaving Winry again to raise a child by herself. Ed couldn't even bear the thought of never seeing Winry again. In fact, he should feel grateful for being blessed with the second chance of being in Amestris.

Edward turned his head when he heard the soft pitter-patter of a child's shoes running down the hall, coming closer to the guest room in which he was staying in. There was a giggle as the four-year-old passed by the doorway, Edward only able to make out a gold and pink blur. The stairs began to creak as Elizabeth made her way down them, jumping off the last step and landing with a thud. He heard the sound of Winry's voice and then a loud, happy squeal from the toddler.

Half of Ed's face was buried in the pillow, and the other half peeked through staring at the doorway. He couldn't help but crack a small smile. He could at least finally admit that the kid was adorable. His kid was adorable. His own child.

His mistake.

It was night time now, nearly nine o'clock. Elizabeth's bed time. Two sets of footsteps came thundering up the stairs, the toddler squealing with joy as her mother ran after her, threatening her with tickling if her daughter wasn't in bed soon. They ran by the room, Ed catching eye contact with Winry briefly before she ran into Elizabeth's room. There was a silence after that. Edward guessed that it was Winry tucking her daughter in for the night and perhaps even telling her a cliché bedtime story. But it wasn't long before he heard the lights click and the door shut, followed by soft footsteps coming toward his door. Quickly, before Winry's footsteps reached the doorway, Ed switched the direction of his face so the back of his head was facing her.

"How long do you plan on doing this? It's a little depressing." Her voice was stern, yet concerned, like _he_ was her child.

"Doing what?" He responded, knowing very well what she was accusing him of.

"Won't you at least eat something, Ed?" Winry asked, making her way toward the bed and sitting down on the mattress's edge. Ed felt the mattress tilt slightly under her weight, but still refused to turn to her.

Ed heard her sigh with disgruntlement and he held his breath when she placed a cool hand on his bare back. He didn't dare move as she slid her fingers up his spine, afraid the slightest twitch might lose her touch. Ed let out his breath slowly and quietly as she ran her fingers across his nape and through his fine gold hair. Her cold fingers left a small tingling feeling where ever they crossed, causing a chill to run through his spine. Winry's fingertips pressed into his scalp and moved in small circles, massaging his warm skin.

It brought him back to memories from years ago. Back then, she either did this to arouse, comfort, or calm Edward. He assumed she was trying to comfort him. And it was working. Ed rolled over to look up at her, taking her cold, massaging hand into his own warm one.

Winry smiled for a brief moment before it slowly escaped from her lips. She looked into those damn empty eyes of his. They were once filled with such ambition, confidence and passion. Such hope. It was gone now. And misery and sadness moved in.

It then occurred to her that she hadn't asked him any questions about where he was or what he was doing for four years. Maybe it didn't matter. He was there now, right? She had her hand in his, and she had dreamed about having even the slightest physical contact with him. But curiosity hovered over her like a dark cloud every time she looked into those eyes. What made him lose that vibrancy and optimism?

Edward sat up with a grunt. He felt exhausted, even after lying in that bed for several hours.

"I wanted to see you the most, Winry. Out of Al and Rose and Teacher. While I was in Germany, all I wanted to do was see you." He paused, looking down at her hand in his. "When I had it in my head that I would be seeing you again, I pictured a perfect reunion." He chuckled slightly at the pitiful irony before picking up her hand and pressing the palm of it against his cheek.

"Beggars can't be choosers, I guess." He looked up at her with somewhat of a smile. "I have you, at least. I'm perfectly content with that. I'm here for you now."

Winry was appalled. What could she say? Ed was almost never this straight forward with her back when they were teenagers. And whenever he was, it seemed like he had a hard time telling her things like this. But now, it seemed like he was speaking straight from his heart. Perhaps it was a sign of maturity.

Winry realized that he was waiting for a reaction from her, besides sitting there, staring at him with a surprised look on her face. A response. She knew what the right one would be. She knew she wanted it too.

It was a pleasurably familiar feeling, the softness and warmth of her lips against his. He reminisced about it often back in Germany, but had forgotten how it felt over the long years. Edward bit into the kiss, tasting the sweetness of her bottom lip, his hand leaving hers and cupping the bottom of her chin. Winry smiled behind the kiss as she felt his automail hand creep up to her waist where it remained on her hip. She tilted her head to the side as he deepened the kiss, his tongue running along her top lip, asking for an entrance. She obliged, of course, wanting nothing less. He was kissing her with such desperation, as if their lips connecting was his life support. In a way, it was.

Once their tongues met, Ed didn't hesitate pulling the blond woman back with his body until the two were laying down; She was on top of him, his arms were wrapped around her torso, and his hands ran all over her back. Her legs tangled with his just as her fingers tangled with his blond locks. The young adults' tongues wrestled and explored. Winry broke the kiss, sucking slightly on his bottom lip as she did so. Her lips kissed his jawbone and then his neck when he tilted his chin up, giving her room to do so.

"I missed you so much Edward," She said softly and breathlessly before pressing her lips against his skin again.

Edward noticed now that he was panting lightly, and how much he wanted her. It had been four years since he had a woman's touch. Her touch. He wanted more. Ed wanted her soft lips everywhere on his body.

He guessed it was too much to ask at that point. Winry pulled away, staring intensely at the clock hanging above the doorway. It was nearly 9:20 P.M.

"Shit." She cursed, pushing herself off of Edward, "Shit. Shit. Shit. I'm going to be late." Winry spouted and walked about the room for a moment as if she had forgotten making out with the man she had missed "so much".

Edward sat up, an obvious look of disappointment smothered on his heated face. "Late for what?"

"Work," She said as she began rushing out of the guest room.

He grabbed his trousers, pulling them on and over his semi-hard erection, and followed her quickly into her bedroom. "Work? Why? It's so late..." He was practically whining, until he watched her pull her shirt off. Then he shut his mouth. She still had that amazing body he loved so much. Everything about her was so perfectly proportioned. Her hips, her breasts, her tight stomach. And when she began sliding off her pants, over her long thin legs, that's when he lost it.

Ed caught her off guard when he grabbed her waist and pressed her against the closet doors, hearing it rattle slightly. His lips attacked her neck, kissing a sucking her smooth skin.

"Edward, I...I can't do this now..." Her words were objecting, but her movements said different. She tilted her head back and allowed her hands to travel down his back. "Ed, I can't..." Winry's hands continued to moved downward until they were grasping his firm bottom. Ed pressed his hips forward, needing something for his erection to rub against before he went insane. Winry felt his hard member press against her upper thigh, and she ground her hips back, biting her lip as she felt Ed give out a shaky sigh of pleasure against her neck. Winry pressed harder and tightened her grip on his bottom, causing Ed to let out a small hiss.

Right in the middle of the bliss, there was a heavy knock from downstairs. The two looked at the doorway immediately. The doorbell rang. Once. And then twice.

"Who the hell..." Ed started, trying hard to ignore the throbbing sensation in his crotch.

"God dammit." Winry huffed, pulling away from Edward once more, and flung open the closet door. The uniform that she pulled out was all too familiar to the blond man. Royal blue with gold trimmings.

"The military?" Ed asked in a surprised, almost annoyed tone, watching her dress. "You're in the military?"

"I don't have time to explain."

_Ding-dooong._

Winry slid up the small blue skirt over her legs. A mini-skirt. It was a dead give away to who was actually Fuhrer now. It gave Ed a nostalgic sense of irritation.

_Diiiiiing.....Dooooong._

"For God's sake, I'm coming!" She almost hollered, but Ed could tell that she was trying to keep her voice low to avoid waking up Liz.

"Why are you working so late?" He asked, watching her pull her hair into a bun.

"We'll talk when I get back," She said, slipping her feet into small, black, yet professional heels. "Keep an eye on Elizabeth. I'll be back in the morning."

After a quick kiss, she left the room, running down the hall, her heels clicking off the wood. The doorbell rang once more before she actually got to the door. He could hear some conversation before the door slammed shut. Ed sighed, and took a look around him.

_What now?_

The only thing he could think of doing was to head off to bed and hope that when he woke up, she would be by his side.

But there was one thing he had to do before he went to to bed.

Slowly and carefully, Ed made his way down the hall until he reached the last door. He made sure it didn't creak when he opened it; There was no need to add to the noise that had just occurred. The small crack of light from the hallway poured into the dark room and over the bed where the small child was nestled quietly underneath her purple covers. Her arm was wrapped around a large giraffe that seemed worn down, and her thumb was tucked securely between her lips. He could hear her soft, regular breathing.

Elizabeth was downright gorgeous. Like her mother. Edward hoped she was smart, like himself. Book smart. Just like her father.

Edward hesitated before shutting the door.

_Which is me...Right?_

_

* * *

  
_

Way to leave you hanging right?

Sorry, but I felt like I was writing too much.

Review, and I'll be sure to update soon!

:]


	6. Unanswered requests

I am Here for Good, Darling

Chapter 6

"Leaving the kid alone in the house, chief? Sheska didn't answer the door like usual." Jean Havoc, a cigarette hanging loosely from his lips, glanced at Winry who was climbing into the passenger seat of the vehicle. He grinned, "If you're dropping the kid, does that mean I have a chance?" He asked, jokingly.

"Get real," Winry said with a smile as she buckled her seatbelt. "And don't worry, I have someone watching her."

"Ouch," He said with a small chuckle as he began to pull out of the driveway. "So, is there a reason you bailed out on work these past two days? You never miss work."

"Yeah."

"Well, aren't you going to tell me why?"

"No."

"Geez, someone's being awfully cold tonight." Major Havoc said with a small laugh.

Winry shrugged with a smile before looking out the window at the quiet city passing by them. "I'm happier than you think, though."

* * *

It was early morning when Edward awoke. Somewhere around six o'clock. He wasn't used to getting up at this hour, but the sound of something falling and crashing in a room down the hallway echoed throughout the empty house, causing his eyes to snap open. Ed glanced around the room with tired eyes before pushing himself out of bed to investigate the loud noise.

He scratched the back of his head with a large yawn as he neared the room in which a noise came from, but quieted and slowed down his pace when he realized it came from Elizabeth's room. Ed could hear her shuffling around behind the door and swallowed. He knocked once before giving out a polite, "Elizabeth?" The shuffling stopped. "Is everything okay in there?"

"Um. Um." The toddler stuttered. "Y-yes..."

Four-year-olds were really bad at lying. He couldn't care less whether she was lying, but curiosity made him open the door slowly.

Her back was turned to him and it looked as though she was trying to shove a rather large object into her rather small backpack. As he stepped toward her he realized that the object was actually a large book.

She must have realized that she had been caught, and turned to Edward, a sort of pleading look smothered on her adorable face. "Please! Please don't tell mama, Mister Edward." He could tell she was close to tears, and it made Edward's heart twist and sink.

"Don't worry, I won't," He assured her as he knelled down, placing a hand on top of her head. "But what are you trying to hide? I'm sure it can't be that bad."

"I don't think it is," Liz said, looking down at her shoes, "but mama doesn't like me looking at it."

Ed smiled, "What could it be? Mind if I see?" He spoke to her comfortingly, hoping that the young girl would be able to trust him.

He watched as Elizabeth pulled out a book, stumbling a bit under it's large weight before handing it to Ed with an ashamed look.

His heart stopped once he saw the cover as he knew the book all too well. "Where did you get this?" He looked up at her before looking back down at the book and flipping it open. It was though he had read this book over and over again. He remembered everything. The theorems. The equations. The transmutation circles. Word for word. It was the first book he had ever read about alchemy. Introduction to Alchemy. It was the beginning to many hardships throughout his life.

And here his own daughter was. Reading it. At such a young age. "D-do you understand it?"

Elizabeth smiled and held her hands behind her back. "A little. I can't read, but it's fun to look at." She giggled, "But mama said I shouldn't read it because it will stunt my growth."

Edward grimaced.

_Telling her short jokes? Real nice._

"And..." The toddler hesitated, "She gets sad sometimes. She said she didn't want me to leave her too. Whatever that means."

He frowned, handing her back the book. "Well, don't worry," Ed said with a comforting smile. "I won't say a thing."

* * *

Shortly after, Liz was off to school, leaving Edward alone in the large house. He found himself looking into the bathroom mirror after splashing some icy water on his face. His eyes were dark and cold, like a corpse's eyes. But they hadn't been that way for all of the past four years.

Before he went to study rockets with Alfons Heidrich, Ed lived with his father, studying the laws of physics and modern science.

Back then, his eyes were filled with madness. Insanity. At that time he couldn't bring himself to believe that there was a world where alchemy didn't exist. Where his life's work didn't exist. He would stay up all hours of the night, scribbling transmutation circles on paper, or clasping his hands, trying to get at least a spark. After a few months, the thought finally began to sink in, and he began to drown his insanity with alcohol and liquor. As the long years went by, the optimism in his eyes began to fade until there was nothing. Eyes are a window to the soul, but somehow his soul escaped, like heat in a draft.

Edward snapped out of his reminiscent thoughts when he heard the door slam shut. He began to wonder how long he had been standing like he was, just staring into the eyes of his reflection. It must have been for a while; The sink was nearly overflowing.

* * *

Edward was surprised when he didn't see anyone downstairs.

"Hey, Winry?" He blinked and began walking by the couch, toward the front door, and halted when he felt two arms wrap around his torso from behind. Ed was pulled back quickly and lying down on the couch before he even knew what was happening.

The two arms were still wrapped around his stomach and beneath him, he heard Winry's voice. "Good Morning." Ed rolled to the side so that he was off of her, and pushing back against the couch so that the two could fit. They were now facing each other, tired blue eyes meeting dull gold eyes.

"Long night?" He asked her, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her closer to him. She nuzzled her head underneath his chin.

"Yeah. I had to make up for the past two nights I didn't show up."

There was a long pause.

"Winry, why did you join the military?"

She shrugged. He squeezed his grasp on her.

"Nevermind," He said. "Just sleep." Maybe it was best that he saved his questions for her. Winry could start interrogating him about the past four years. He just wasn't up for it. He could settle with the blissful ignorance. For now. Though his mind swam with the many questions he had for her.

_Why would you do something as reckless as joining the military?_

_Why are you working so late?_

_And who is Elizabeth's real father?_

Ed felt Winry shift a bit and looked down to see that she was examining his prosthetic arm. "What is this crap? It looks like you need some maintenance.

"Later." He responded, wrapping his prosthetic hand around hers. "You look exhausted."

"Oh Edward, you underestimate me." She said with a small grin before kissing the side of his neck lightly. Ed shivered. "I still have plenty of energy." She said enthusiastically.

"Winry, seriously. You can't over work-" His sentence was cut off by her grabbing his hands as she quickly rolled on top of his body. Winry straddled his waist, holding his wrists up against the arm of the couch.

Edward was pinned.

Winry was pleased to see Ed's cheeks turn red and he noticed that she was staring at his face, which made him blush even harder. "Well, this is familiar." Ed grumbled with an attitude, looking to the side, a grumpy look on his face. "You love to have your way, don't you?" He _could_ have broken away easily.

Winry smiled. "I love seeing you like this."

"Sadist."

"Maybe so, but," she said, lowering her head down to plant another kiss on the side of his neck, "you like it."

Ed didn't respond, but the growing blush on his face seemed to agree with her.

It was hard for Ed not to give into her antics, but she was on top of him, sucking and kissing his neck, pinning his arms, and in that little, blue mini-skirt. Ed could see why Fuhrer asshole wanted them so badly. He could feel himself wanting her more and more every time she left a little kiss trailing from his neck to his lips. She brushed her lips softly against his, and pulled away with a smile before he could kiss her back. But Ed was already too aroused to deal with her teasing. He lifted up his head, his lips attacking hers, kissing them with hunger and need. Their tongues met and wrestled, even after the two's lips parted.

Winry could feel all of Ed's bodily reactions, especially since she was straddling his waist. She felt her body shiver as she pressed her hips down against his, feeling the bulge rub against her through her panties. Edward let out a shaky breath.

"Winry, can I have my hands back now?"

As soon as she released his wrists, Ed's hands went immediately for her lower back, pressing down so that she was rubbing up against him harder. Winry could feel Ed's body quiver underneath her own as she ground her hips against his with the help of his pressuring hands.

Her lips went back to his neck as she lifted up her hips, giving her hand enough room to grab Ed's hard member. He gave out a gasp as she wrapped her hand tightly around his manhood and he hissed when she squeezed. Her fingers massaged him firmly, working in small circles. Ed let out a small whimper, throwing his head back. She pressed harder.

"Winry..." He moaned in such a pitiful and needy way, that it even made Winry blush.

She looked up at him for a moment before kissing his neck once more, then his collar bone as she slid up his shirt with a hand, the other still massaging Ed's bulge. She kissed and licked down Ed's perfectly defined stomach, sucking the rim of his naval once she reached it.

"Keep going," Edward urged, placing a hand on top of Winry's head as she unbuckled his pants. He bent his trembling knees when she reached in and grabbed Ed's member. "Oh god, Winry," He moaned, bracing himself for what was coming next.

Winry's head shot up before she could go any further. The door bell rang.

Her hand retreated from Ed's pants and she looked at the door. "Don't stop," Edward pleaded, practically yelling, "Forget them!"

"What if it's important?" Winry said, standing up and fixing her blouse and skirt before making her way to the door.

Edward let out a growl of frustration as he watched her open up the door. Just barely, so no one could see past her.

"Winry! I just came to check up on you since you haven't called me in two days."

The voice was familiar. Whiny. Mousy. Definitely Sheska.

"Oh, I'm fine, really." Winry assured her, "I've just taken the past few days off of work."

Obviously Winry hasn't said anything to anyone about Edward's return.

"Are you sick Winry? Your face is all red."

"No, no. I'm fine really. I'm about to nap, so goodbye." Winry said as she slowly began to shut the door.

"But, but-" Winry cut Sheska off by slamming the door. Giving out a long sigh, Winry turned back to Ed and smiled.

"So how about that maintenance?"

* * *

Review please!


	7. Passion and guilt

Asdfghjkl;

I am just so excited for the Brotherhood anime series! If it follows the manga, hopefully that means that there is going to be a lot of EdxWin action! I also can't wait for the English dub AND for upcoming chapters in the manga.

Anyway, enjoy this chapter.

* * *

I am Here for Good, Darling

Chapter 7

Edward could no longer blame his father. That would make him a hypocrite. He left Winry with a kid just as his father left his mother with Ed and Al. The situations were different, of course, but both Ed and his father had their reasons. Perhaps the reasons for leaving the two cherished women didn't outweigh the hardships the women had to go through, especially in Edward's mom's case. Luckily, Ed returned to Winry before it was too late. Now, he wanted to do everything he could to make her smile.

Even if that meant trying on various automail arms and legs just so she could see her work in action. The only problem was, if Winry wanted to see her work operating, it meant that she would have to connect his nerves to the automail multiple times. By the third model, Ed was beginning to regret this experimentation that agreed to.

"Ed!" Winry held up two different arms, and he could practically see her eyes shimmering and sparkling like a little kid's. "Which one do you try on next?! This one's heavier but it's design is different from any other automail I've ever created!" She practically sang while dancing with the prosthetic limbs.

Edward had his head leaning back against the wall as he sat in the work bench in his boxers. He stared up at the ceiling, pain and irritation enshrouded his face. "I don't care, just hurry up and get it over with woman! I don't know how much more of this I can take!"

Winry stuck up her nose. "I don't know why you're giving me an attitude Edward. You agreed to do this. It's too early to complain, we haven't even gotten to the legs."

Ed groaned and looked to the side. "Can't we do this tomorrow? Being your test subject his painful."

Winry sighed, "Fine, it's not as much fun when you're complaining anyway. At least I got rid of that bum arm and spare leg. How do these models feel?"

Edward clenched his new steel fist and bent his elbow. He wiggled his toes and bent his knee. "Best I felt in four years." He smiled up at her. "Thanks Win. You really are the best mechanic."

It was funny to see her blush when he said that. Winry took a lot of pride into her work, and he knew it. Winry cleared her throat and turned from him before beginning to put away her automail. "Well it's the only reason I joined the military. The only reason I _could_ join the military." She responded, modestly.

"So you joined so you could make weapons for them?" Edward assumed, giving her a look of disapproval.

"It's not only that!" She snapped back. "I help out injured soldiers. If you haven't forgotten, I'm an expert in the medical field."

Edward sighed as he looked down to examine his new leg. "And why are you working so late?"

"To spend more time with Elizabeth during the day..." She answered quietly, shutting the case that contained her work. "It's hard enough for a little girl to grow up without her father around, much less have a mother who's constantly away."

It was an opening for the question Ed wanted to ask most, but it was also the question he dreaded the most.

"It's me, right?" He asked subtly, continuing to look down. There was still a lot of pain surging through him because of the automail, but his heart was beating so rapidly, he couldn't even tell.

"What are you talking about Edward?" She responded to his vague question while organizing her tools.

What he really wanted to say was 'nevermind', but he needed this verification.

"I'm Elizabeth's father, right?"

Winry's head shot up, her eyes looking dead ahead at the wall.

She realized it would eventually come to this. Ed was a smart man who would put two and two together. Like her, he didn't forget that one treacherous night in central.

There was a tense silence between the two before Winry decided to say something.

"What do you want the answer to that to be?" She spoke in a monotone, her eyes continuing to focus on the wall in front of her. She _could_ tell him that he wasn't. He wouldn't feel like it was his burden to bear. He has had a life that was difficult beyond imagination, and yet, he was still only in his early twenties. What could he do to figure it out? While all of this was true, Winry still wanted him to take pride in being a father. Who knew, maybe Ed actually _wanted _the truth to be that he was her father.

"The truth Winry."

"Well, the thing is-"

"Winry." Edward's tone was stern. "Just tell me. Yes or no."

Winry sighed. _Alright, I guess I should tell him the truth. He deserves to know, after all._

"Yes. You're her father."

Edward was alleviated. But it seemed that the weight that was just lifted off his shoulders would soon be replaced with the responsibilities of being a parent.

"Well damn," Ed grinned with a little bit of discontent, "I don't know where to begin. To hell if I know how to handle a kid." While Edward had plenty of hands-on experience with various life situations, he had never been around that many small children. It probably would have been easier with a boy, since he was a young boy himself at a point, but he never even had a sister.

"Don't worry," Winry looked down with a small smile tugging tiredly at her lips, "I'll help you through it."

* * *

"So Mustang sure wormed his way up." Edward said with a agitated tone as she chewed a piece of steak off his fork. Elizabeth, Winry and Ed sat at the round dinner table, Winry cutting up Elizabeth's steak into small portions so it would be easier on the toddler's small teeth. Elizabeth hummed happily as she danced her doll across the table top.

"He deserves it, you know." She responded in a bitter tone before she began cutting her own steak. "After that deal with the whole 'homunculus fuhrer', he became a hero to the people."

Edward swallowed his mouthful of food before taking a drink of water. "I see, he's got even you under his spell." He grimaced. "That bastard was always trying to get a damn promotion. Just for those skimpy little mini-skirts."

"Watch your language." Winry said, nodding to her daughter who was still humming to her doll. "Well, I _do_ work for him Edward. I should give our own president support."

Ed took another bite of his steak, "I worked under him too if you haven't forgotten," He remarked, barely chewing the meat before swallowing it, "And I didn't give a shit what his motives were!"

"Shit!" Elizabeth announced loudly and cheerfully at the joyfulness of hearing a brand new word. "Shit, shit!"

Edward nearly choked on his half-chewed piece of meat he just swallowed and Winry placed a hand over her forehead.

"Now see what you've done, Ed? She's going to grow up with a potty-mouth like you." Winry looked at her daughter, "Elizabeth. That's a bad word to say. And put your toys away while you're eating dinner." She scolded.

Liz frowned and tucked her doll under the table. "Yes, mama."

Ed gulped once he made eye contact with Winry's death glare and decided that it would be smart if he just kept quiet for the rest of dinner.

* * *

Winry walked into her bedroom that night after tucking Elizabeth in. Her heart felt warm after the conversation her and her daughter had just had in replacement of the usual bedtime story.

"_Mama, how long is mister Edward staying?"_

_Winry gave her daughter a amused, yet curious look. "Why do you ask?"_

_The small child shrugged. "I don't want him to leave like Mr. Russell. I liked him."_

_Winry stroked Liz's forehead, "I know. But are you saying you like mister Edward?"_

_The toddler nodded her head enthusiastically. "Tell him he should stay for a long time."_

_Winry couldn't hold back her smile even if she wanted to. "Alright."_

She wondered if she should tell Ed, who was sitting at the edge of her bed examining his new leg.

"Sorry, Winry." He looked up at her timidly, frowning. "About dinner."

Winry sighed and waved her hand dismissively at the matter. "Don't worry, it wasn't that big of a deal, you just need to watch your mouth, shrimp." She was asking for it, of course.

"Who..." Ed clenched his fist, "ARE YOU CALLING A BITE-SIZED SHRIMP?!" He howled, but was responded with a small, yet sturdy wrench slamming directly into his forehead.

"Shh," Winry hushed with a smile, "Elizabeth is trying to sleep."

"How much do you plan on hurting me in one day woman?" He asked, rubbing the red area on his sore forehead.

_Just like the good old days. _"You're right, I guess you did let me attach a few pieces of work on you today," She placed a hand on her hip and looked down at him. "Alright then, what do you want for an equivalent exchange Edward?"

Edward hesitated and then swallowed, hard, realizing what she was getting at. "You haven't slept today, Winry." He had a feeling that she was going to pull this act, but he had already decided to refuse any offer she had with what integrity he had left.

"Like I said before, Edward, you underestimate me." Of course she was tired, but she had pulled longer hours without sleeping. "Alright, suit yourself." Winry shrugged, before grabbing the rim of her shirt and pulling the article over her head. Ed clamped his mouth shut as he rolled his eyes over the soft skin of her stomach and up to her perfect breasts that were contained by a mere black bra. As much as he wanted to rip that annoying fabric off her chest with his teeth, he had to remain strong and not give in. Some might have called it pride, but Ed simply looked at it as self-control.

Winry walked toward Edward slowly, her small skirt unbuttoned so that it was hanging loosely from her hips. "You know, I love it when you look at me like that." She purred, stepping in front of him. Winry bent her body down toward him, he leaned back, a large blush radiating across his cheeks. She drew closer to him and he scooted back. The two moved in that pattern until eventually, Ed was laying on his back and Winry's body rested on top of his.

"Gotcha," She smirked.

"I ain't giving in," He refused, propping himself up on his elbows, trying his hardest to ignore the wonderful feeling of her breasts pressing against his chest.

"Oh yeah?" Winry grinned, moving forward to kiss his lower neck as she pushed his shirt up with her fingertips. "I don't know why you're refusing Ed. You seemed so eager earlier on the couch," She pointed out before trailing her lips over the muscles of Ed's stomach. Her hands were already working on undoing his pants.

"Winry, wait," He pleaded softly, but without much force. She didn't listen but he didn't do anything to stop her, either.

She ran her lips down his stomach, after tugging Ed's boxers over his standing erection, until she felt his small, dark blond curls tickle her chin. Winry glanced up at Ed, catching a glimpse of his hotly flushed face.

His body tensed once she ran her tongue along his length, causing a surge of heat to crawl from the tip of his nose, down to his groin. "Win-Winry...s-s-stop..." It was his last attempt of self control before he was at the complete mercy of her hands. Or _mouth_.

Winry took his head between her lips_,_ running her tongue alone it's edges so softly and discreetly, that Ed could tell without a doubt that she was teasing him. He groaned with impatience, but also with need. Winry felt Ed's flesh hand creep up the back of her hand, resting there, but also silently urging her to continue. She smiled to herself before sliding her moist lips down his member, Edward bucking his hips aggressively in response.

"Winry," Her name stumbled out from his lips, "k-keep going..." Funny. It was just a brief moment ago that Ed was asking her to 's-s-stop'.

Winry pulled her head back up, increasing the suction between her lips in his shaft. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of Ed's prosthetic hand holding on tightly to a pillow. She was sure that if his hand was flesh, his knuckles would would be white.

Her head bobbed up and down in a fluid motion slowly at first, but her pace picked up at a quick rate as soon as Ed increased the pressure between his hand and the back of her head. He had his head thrown back, his teeth clenched tightly together to avoid groaning loudly and waking up the innocent four-year-old in the adjacent room. The hand on the back of Winry's head pressed harder, causing her to increase the depth of how much of Edward she had in her mouth. It wasn't long before Ed began thrusting his hips toward her lips.

He simply couldn't help himself. Her mouth surpassed any other attempts at pleasure Ed had experienced on those lonely nights in Germany. Imagination, memories, and his hand were the only things to keep him company.

Winry squeezed her eyes shut, trying her best to keep up with Ed's rough pace. If it wasn't for her mouthful, she would have been grinning. She had won this battle. Not only had Ed given in, but he had took control of the matter in such a way, that even Winry had heat pouring from between her legs.

"Oh fuck, oh shit," He groaned loudly, feeling an orgasm creeping up. His metal hand released the pillow and was now flailing over the nearby nightstand, knocking over the lamp and alarm clock onto the floor. He was moaning rapidly and pitifully now, bending his back so that he was almost in a sitting position. His hips were thrusting shortly but rapidly, matching the pace of his hand. Winry had her hands grasping the bedsheets, and finally she heard his voice explode with her name.

"W-Winry!" Ed dug his heels into the mattress as he reached his climax, his seed practically exploding into her mouth. He had his hips pushed up against her mouth and his hand pressed down against the back of her head.

There was a brief moment of silence before Ed collapsed back into the feathery mattress, feeling the mattress comfort the soreness of his back from being hunched over so tensely.

Winry sat up, disconnecting Ed from her mouth, causing him to hiss at the oversensitivity over his now deflating member. She wiped her moist eyes before wiping her mouth as she looked down at the sprawled out Edward, who was trying desperately to catch his breath.

Once his breathing returned to a normal pace, Ed looked up at the blond woman, whose eyes were probably moist from trying to control her gag reflexes. "Sorry," He apologized, propping his body onto his elbows. "I didn't mean to be so rough...I couldn't help myself." Ed spoke with a rosy blush and an embarrassed tone.

He was being sincere and she smiled. "Don't worry about it. I understand." Winry covered Edward back up before joining him in laying on the bed. She wiped a bead of sweat that was trickling down his forehead. His flesh arm pulled her closer to his heated body. "Thanks, Win."

"No, Ed, thank _you_." Winry was glad that he acted the way that he did. So roughly. So passionately. Yet so needy. It was obvious that he hadn't been with another woman in the past for years. He had remained loyal to her.

Ed couldn't tell at that point, but inside Winry, guilt had been stomping around.

He was loyal to her for the past four years, but she couldn't say the same thing.

* * *

Winry had fallen asleep right away after that. He could tell that she was beyond exhausted, but it was only a mere seven hours later that she had to go into work.

She left him alone in bed that morning, giving him a quick peck on the cheek after changing before she left. He heard the sound of an engine outside starting up and taking off.

He sighed. _Another day alone in this big, empty house._

Ed pulled himself out of bed, realizing the lamp he had knocked over the night before was still laying on the floor. He reached down to pick it up, but only to catch glimpse of something hidden between the back of the dresser and the wall. Curious, Ed pulled it out, revealing it to be none other than a small book. Nothing like a textbook. More like a...

_Journal_.

He opened the book, taking note that each page was filled with Winry's handwriting. It had and aggregation of dates and entries. Ed soon realized that he stumbled across none other than

_Winry's diary._

The dates began about three years ago and ended about one and a half years ago.

_N-No. I couldn't possibly..._ He thought as he began to flip the book shut. But that's when he caught glimpse of it. A familiar name

_Russell Tringham._

It was written multiple times throughout the journal. What the hell would Winry be doing talking to him? There was a pang of jealousy and curiosity inside of him. He had to read it now. He had to. She would never find out. Ed was always the type of person to pursued answers, and this book held countless. So,

Edward began to read.

_October 1st_

_Today I met the most peculiar person..._

_

* * *

  
_

Review please!


	8. I kiss his lips, I taste your mouth

The next two chapters or so will be switching back and forth from flashbacks from Winry's diary to Ed.

Just a heads up!

Enjoy.

* * *

I am Here for Good, Darling

Chapter 8

A typical workday routine for Sergeant Rockbell?

She had spent most of her time working on broken down tanks and armed vehicles, and with what little time she had left at the end of her shift, she would work on her latest designs of automail. Her life was a busy one. Often times, well for the _most part_, she had a hard time focusing.

General Mustang would bail out on his work pay her daily visits. Winry always wondered how he expected to reach President when he was never in his office and too lazy to do some paperwork. And, where ever Roy went, Lieutenant Colonel Hawkeye was sure to follow. Riza had gotten used to these daily routines, and never complained when it came to visiting Winry. She had grown quite fond of the young mechanical genius. Some would even mistake the two as sisters.

Who could have Riza and Roy around without their trusty subordinates? Major Havoc, Lieutenant Breda, Lieutenant Farman, and Second Lieutenant Fuery would all often find themselves killing time in the garages with Winry also. Sometimes Winry wondered if it was because they pitied her and thought some company would comfort her and ease stress. Of course it wasn't the case. The whole gang had grown attached to her it seemed. It made her workspace all but spacious and Winry could never focus. It wasn't a bad thing, really. She would have much rather had meaningful conversations and share funny stories with the group. Sometimes Winry would go a whole day without getting any work done, but on a few rare occasions in which her co-workers were forced to their duties, she would have the whole day to herself.

It was her workday routine, and she couldn't get enough.

On a warm September night, Winry had gotten off work early under General Roy's orders. He had said something along the lines of, "Sergeant Rockbell, I'm releasing you from your current duties to accompany me and my subordinates for some late night R and R activities." He said it in the most professional tone, and anyone nearby would certainly think that he was giving some serious direct orders. Winry smiled, and grabbed her coat, knowing all to well what he really meant.

The bar was only a couple of blocks away, allowing the soldiers to walk there. It saved gas and a few probable vehicle accidents on the way back to H.Q. It wasn't too crowded that night. A few business men and soldiers gathered around the radio, listening to the newest sports reports. A few turned their head to the higher-ranking officers, but there wasn't much more than that acknowledgement. These higher-ups were regulars and even the bartender started pouring their "usuals" as soon as he saw the familiar faces. Though, Winry never drank. She was always content with a large soda.

The seven of them all sat together at a round table, chatting amongst themselves as if they were a little clique in highschool. Winry always it an enjoyable feeling to be accepted into their small group. And she was glad she could give Riza a little bit of feminine company.

"Say Winry," Breda's husky voice boomed over anyone else's. He was already two beers ahead of everyone else, but didn't feel the lightest buzz. He was considered the biggest drinker out of the seven, and you could definitely tell by the beer belly that was hidden behind his belt and under his coat. "That private over there has been eying you since we've been here." He nodded over to a group of lower-ranked men, who were probably fresh out of the military 's whole table fell silent as they looked over conspicuously also.

"C'mon chief," Jean said with a cigarette stuck in his grin. "Why don't you go introduce yourself?"

Winry couldn't help but roll her eyes and take a sip of the drink, hoping the group would drop the matter.

"What's that Havoc? We all know you would be the most disappointed if Sergeant Rockbell up and did that." Roy's mocking tone said next.

"Oh, c'mon," Jean flustered, his cheeks pink,"That's ridiculous."

Fuery and Farman chuckled while Riza sighed, "Now boys, lets not taunt poor Winry with something she doesn't want to do. It's up to her." The men quieted down, and Winry smiled thankfully at Riza.

Breda shrugged, "Alls I'm saying is that it's typical for a girl her age to be out chasing a husband. Plenty of bachelors in the military, eh?" He said with a grin while facetiously flexing one of his biceps.

Winry looked down at her half empty glass for a little while before responding, "I don't have time to date. I already have enough trouble juggling six other men," She said, looking around the table at them. It was Riza's turn to chuckle.

"Ooh," Havoc said with a sudden realization before taking his cigarette out of his mouth with his index and middle finger. "I get it. Looks like there's someone you're still hung up on." He spoke before exhaling smoke.

The group fell silent once more before Breda's voice boomed out, "Oh, you mean Fullme-!"

He was cut off by a nervous Fuery covering Breda's large mouth with his hand. It made Breda realize that he said something that he probably shouldn't have.

All eyes were on Winry now, hoping that she wasn't too sensitive to the matter. Instead she smiled softly, "Like I said, I just don't have time."

Another silence. This time, Mustang spoke up. "You know," He started, holding his beer up lazily in his hand, "There's a saying that I live by when it comes to situations like this. You probably shouldn't take it too literally." Everyone's ears tuned in to hear Roy Mustang's infamous, yet mostly effective, wisdom on relationships. "To get _over_ someone," Roy made sharp eye contact with Winry, "You must get _under_ someone else."

There was a brief silence once more before Winry went red and Riza gave out an almost disgusted sigh.

"You know that doesn't work for just anyone, boss." Jean scoffed, looking to the side in utter irritation.

"You're just angry because you never get the chance to test out that theory!" Breda roared before taking a long chug of his beer.

While the small table exploded with laughter and drunken arguments, Winry sat there, looking down at her drink.

_Maybe he's right..._

_

* * *

  
_

The next day was the first day of October. The sun shined brightly in the sky and there was no wind, making Central pleasurably warm and comfortable. Winry's work garage wasn't too crowded at the moment, and it was unusually silent. Fuery and Farman were absent from work because of their massive hangovers, but Riza, Roy, Heymans and Jean were present, the three men also suffering from hangovers. Winry attempted to turn on her brand saw, but the loud noises were too much for the agonizing men.

"TURN THAT OFF SERGEANT!" Roy hollered and then cringed before leaning back in his chair, holding his forehead.

"Sorry, sir." Winry said timidly. She decided that it would be best and most peaceful if she just worked at her desk on the release forms for the tanks she had been repairing. Winry began unenthusiastically to sign the papers in all the right places, everyone and everything around her becoming nonexistent as she focused on signing her name perfectly. Yes, she could tell it was going to be another boring, uneventful-

"Maybe she knows, brother."

A soft, young man's voice caused Winry to snap out of her trance but she didn't look up. That was, until a hand was placed on top of her papers. It was a right hand. A flesh hand. Long, skinny fingers and perfect nails.

It was a rather rude gesture to interrupt her from her paper work in such a way, but for some reason, it got her attention. She looked up, a lightly surprised look on her face. The two made eye contact, blue meeting blue. The look in his eyes seemed familiar. There was ambition in his eyes. It was different though. She couldn't quite put her finger on it.

"Well, aren't you going to ask her?" The small voice nearby asked.

The man in front of her grinned, flashing perfect, white teeth as he turned to the source of the quiet voice. "Hold on a sec, Fletch. Looks like there's something else I gotta ask first." Winry could sense strong confidence in his voice.

The next thing Winry noticed was the man's stature. Tall; taller than average. Thin. And then his pale blonde hair that seemed to contrast nicely with his lightly tanned skin. She could tell that he worked outside often.

"May I help you?" She asked, slightly bewildered.

"What's your name, gorgeous?" She spotted that confidence again and smiled, shaking her head before looking back down at her paper work.

"I have a kid."

It was her most used excuse for scaring away men that hit on her. And it worked for the most part, making even the most hopeless romantic, Jean Havoc, reluctant to look her up and down.

"There's no ring on your finger."

Persistent.

"And?"

"Don't be so cold. We should go out."

"What?"

"On a date."

Hold on a second.

"Wait, what?"

"How about a typical dinner and a movie?"

"I don't think so."

"I'm not leaving until you say yes."

You've got to be kidding me.

"Go for it!" The familiar voice of Breda exploded. Winry looked over to see that the four of her companions had been watching them with amusement.

"You guys-" She started, and looked to Riza for some support.

"I don't know Winry," The older blonde woman said, "What could be the harm?"

Not you too, Riza.

Winry looked back up at the blond man in front of her. "I don't even know your-"

"Russell Tringham." He smiled at her and she blushed. "And you're Winry Rockbell." It was easy to figure out. Her last name was on her uniform and Riza had just given away her first name.

"I would need a babysitt-"

Russell wrapped his hand around the smaller boy, who Winry guessed was around the age of fifteen or sixteen. "Fletcher's great with kids." Fletcher didn't seem too amused.

"Bu-you-what?" The pressure around her was crushing her, and she gave out an annoyed sigh. "Fine," She said, giving him a stern stare. "Just one date."

There was an annoyed, yet disappointed, growl nearby from Jean. "Damn, how does _he _manage to get a date with Winry after _five minutes_?!"

* * *

"DAMMIT." Ed roared, slamming the diary shut and throwing the book across the room. He sat there for a moment, his teeth clenched and his face hot. _Didn't expect you to give in that easily!_ Never had Ed felt _this_ jealous. He hated it. Winry was his, not Russell's.

Well, at least it was just a date.

_A date..._

_Dinner and a movie? Dark movie theater. Sitting right next to each other..._

Shit.

As much as it killed him to keep reading, he just had to know what happened at their date. Dragging his feet across the floor half-heartily, Ed picked the small book back up and sat down at the bed with it. He flipped through a couple of pages, past her getting ready and past the awkward dinner, to the movie theater.

* * *

Dinner went by smoothly. Russell told Winry about his life as an alchemist and Winry told Russell about her life as a Automail engineer. Both stories left out a few very important, yet unnecessary, details such as knowing a certain short, cantankerous state alchemist.

He had held her hand on the way to the theater down the street from the restaurant, and she could have pulled away, but there was nothing wrong with him. He was intriguing and charming. He held open doors and pulled out chairs for her. Smart and well-mannered.

It was something she certainly wasn't used to.

The movie was interesting. Not the movie itself, of course. Winry spent the whole time paying attention to how the projector worked to produce the black and white image. It was like watching pictures move and it fascinated her. It was safe to say that Winry hadn't been to many movies, especially growing up in such a rural location. She vaguely remembered going once with Ed and Al as little children, but technology had progressed since then, producing a crisper image.

"Don't go to movies much, do you?" Russell asked, looking over at Winry, who seemed so captivated by the cheesy comedy romance movie.

"Yeah," She responded looking behind them at the clicking projector, really wishing she could take it apart and put it back together again.

He chuckled and threw his arm around her shoulders, pulling her gently toward him, so easily, as if the two had been dating for months.

"Well I'm glad you're having a good time."

Winry had never really been on a date like this before, and it was different, but she couldn't exactly say that she hated it. He was comfortable and she felt like she could say anything to him without looking like an idiot.

Yes, she could say that they hit it off quite nicely.

Even with the guilt that she felt on her shoulders.

They made the long walk back to Winry's house, hand in hand, and talking about the movie, and hopes, and future goals. Russell wished to work under the military to support him and his younger brother, that's why he was in central that day. He had been looking for Mustang, and someone tipped Russell off that he was in the garage.

"See that wasn't so bad. It was actually enjoyable," Russell said, opening up the gate to Winry's front yard, letting the small blonde through.

"Yeah, I guess," Winry replied with a smile walking up the stairs of the porch. Russell followed closely behind, his hands in his pocket. "I can tell you do this a lot."

Russell shrugged and grinned as the two stopped by her front door. "So maybe I have a lot of first dates," They now stood facing each other, one hand still in his pocket, the other playing with a piece of her long blond hair, "But I almost never want to go on second dates with most girls. They're all boring." He said, bending down so that their faces were dangerously close. "And you, Winry Rockbell, are not boring. I would kill to go out with you again."

He kissed her. He caught her off guard, but she didn't pull away. And he didn't give enough time to kiss back, even if she wanted to. Russell pulled away, smiling down at her astonished face.

Russell Tringham was tall, not short. Calm and collected, not irritable. His eyes were glossy and blue, not gold. He had a short, flawless hair cut, not long. He was charming, sweet, self-confident and knew what women wanted.

He was the type of man every girl sought after, and she should consider herself lucky for finding such a catch.

Shouldn't she?

When a girl is with a guy like him, another man should not be on that girl's mind the whole time.

Especially not Edward Elric. But she couldn't fight it.

* * *

If you haven't figured it out already, the title of this chapter came from Katy Perry's song, Thinking of you.

The lyrics to her song are just so deliciously relevant during Winry's flashbacks.

I love hearing from you guys, so I encourage you to leave more reviews that tell me what you think so far! You guys are the best. :)

~Amber


	9. What made us human

Hey everyone, thanks for reading my fic!

The reviews are great and I really appreciate them.

And if you would like to add my myspace, the address is /51997425.

I love adding new friends.

I strongly, STRONGLY encourage you guys to reread chapter 10 of Love me, Don't leave me.

There are a lot of references from that chapter in this one. A lot.

Enjoy this chapter!

* * *

I am Here for Good Darling

Chapter 9

Edward ran the tips of his index finger and thumb along the bridge of his nose in an attempt to calm himself down. He tried telling himself that it was to be expected and that she had the right to have a relationship with another man since Edward was considered as good as dead.

"_Gottverdammt_" He cursed. The German practically slipped out from his lips, but it was to be expected. Cursing in German was often the way that Ed expressed his exasperation the past four years. And he did it often.

Winry and Russell had only kissed, and there was still a good half of the diary to go. Edward's stomach was twisting and the thought of her betrayal swam across his mind. Never had he felt this way. He had never felt jealous.

He was fighting a battle within himself. Part of him felt that he was being selfish and narrow-minded, and there was still Winry's perspective of the story to consider, but the jealous and possessive side was slowly dominating the fight.

Ed looked down at the journal, wondering what other dreadful truths it could hold. What could he gain from reading it besides more jealousy? He _could_ just ask Winry about what happened between the two, but would she be completely honest? Besides that, there was still a good couple of hours before she returned home. The suspense was killing him.

Edward told himself that he would keep calm if he read the remaining pages. But he didn't promise himself anything.

* * *

"Mama, lemme wear!" Elizabeth's small hands groped toward her Winry's face as she finished applying her lipstick. The nearly three-year-old was sitting on top of Winry's chiffonier, watching as her mother got ready to go out.

"No, Liz," Winry sighed, "Mama only wears this stuff because Russell likes it. Mama doesn't like it at all."

"Oh," Elizabeth leaned back on her hands and kicked her feet as she watched her mother. "You wook awfully pwetty anyway."

Winry smiled as she watched herself put on her earrings in the mirror. There _was_ a reason she had gotten all dolled up. Tonight was a special occasion. _So_ special, that she even put on the tiny black dress that Russell found in her closet while nosing around. He had said something along the lines of,

"_You would look extremely sexy in this. Wear it more often._"

That was Russell for you. So straight forward. And cocky. It got annoying sometimes, but Winry knew he could tell when he was being an asshole, because moments later, he would become the most charming man ever. Though it was both sides that attracted her. She had always thought that men needed a backbone, and that they couldn't be that sensitive guy all the time.

Although, at times, she wished that he would have just ended things with her when he figured out who Liz's real father was. That night was terrible, and she couldn't understand why he was so angry at first. He refused to tell her. Obviously he and Ed had been acquainted, some way or another. Probably not on good terms. Russell left that night, but came back the following early morning, drunk, and apologizing. That morning, he confessed that he loved her. She said she loved him too, and he smiled. She didn't mean it. She just felt obligated. It was one of her biggest downfalls with him; She was just too nice to admit the truth. To him. And herself.

"Is auntie Sheska watchin' me tonight?" Liz wrinkled her nose at the thought of Sheska reading her another random book all night long. Who knew what it was going to be tonight? Last week, it was an autobiography of some man who invented the automobile. Exciting.

"No, uncle Fletcher-"

The toddler squealed and threw her hands up, "Maybe we'll do anodder puppet show!" Winry watched as her daughters cheeks turned red with excitement. Liz loved Fletch just as if he were her uncle, but still not as much as Alphonse. It must have been a blood family thing. Still, Winry was grateful that Fletcher agreed to babysit all the time He even refused her payments, and just smiled, saying something about how it's no trouble at all and how easy the job is. He really is a sweet kid.

There was a knock downstairs and Winry let out a low, "_Shit_", but Liz was too distracted by her excitement to notice. "Liz, go get the door. Mama's not done getting ready."

"Okie-dokie." The tiny blonde girl climbed off the chiffonier and trotted off to go downstairs and toward the front door.

The two brothers had already let themselves in by the time Elizabeth reached the first floor. Winry heard Liz give out a delighted laugh.

After Winry took a few more minutes to get ready, she slipped on her heels and made her way downstairs where she caught Russell red-handed. He was bent down at eye-level to Liz, giving her a chocolate candy bar.

A small wrench flew through the air and clipped Russell right in the temple. He fell over, but then stood up quickly, his back as straight as an arrow.

"Damn, Winry, you just pull those wrenches out of thin air, don't you?" Russell sighed, rubbing the bump on the side of his head. Obviously he had become familiar with the wrath of Winry's wrenches.

"What are you trying to do? Have Liz bouncing of the walls for Fletcher?" Winry scolded as she made her way down the rest of the steps.

"What?" Russell said, innocently. "I can't give my favorite little girl a present?" He said, patting the small blonde on the head.

The mechanic sighed and grabbed her coat before pulling it on. "Lets hurry, we're going to be late."

Liz had already began to drag Fletcher upstairs to play. "We're going to be back late, Fletch," Winry called, "You can sleep in the guest room."

"Alright!" Fletcher called back. She hoped he could handle Liz after she ate a full chocolate bar.

Winry sighed again before looking at Russell, who had a sort of mocking smirk tugging across his lips.

"What?"

"You're aggravated."

"I'm not."

"Are too." Russell made his way toward Winry. "You look gorgeous, gorgeous." He wrapped his arms around her tiny waist and pulled her close.

"We're going to be late." A smile was beginning to fight her way to her lips. He was doing it again. The whole asshole-to-sweetheart-in-just-three-seconds routine. It worked like a charm every time.

"Can't we just stay here?" He asked as he nuzzled his lips into the side of her neck. She shivered.

"No. We were invited to dinner. We just can't change our minds now. It's an expensive place," She said, "Besides, you _want_ to stay here after giving Liz a whole chocolate bar?"

There was a crash up stairs followed by laughing, and then she sound of running footsteps. Then, "Liz! Get down from that shelf, and give me my hat back!" Yeah, they were going to have a lot of fun tonight.

"I guess you're right," Russell sighed, opening the door to let Winry through. As the two walked down the pathway to the main road, he added, "It would also be hard to have _alone_ time."

Winry flushed with his blunt statement. "What makes you think we'll be doing _that_ tonight?"

"_Because_," Russell started as he wrapped his hand around Winry's, "It's our half-year anniversary."

Winry swallowed. It was true. It had been half-a-year since their first date, and she had barely let Russell lay a finger on her. She kept telling him that she wanted to wait, and he would always be disappointed, but say at the same time, "_You're worth the wait._" She didn't know what she she was being so conservative about. He was handsome and sweet, and they _had_ been together for a long time. He had been completely loyal to her. But there was something that made her reluctant. Some sort of mental block.

Deep down, she knew what it was.

"You know, you can't win her over with chocolate."

"What?" Russell looked over at her.

"You can't always use materialistic things to get her to win her over."

"I just want her to like me."

"She _does _like you. You just have to give it time."

As much as she hated it, Winry kept her and Russell's relationship a secret to her daughter. She didn't want to confuse her. Though, she knew a time would come when Liz would ask about her real father. Her friends around her had two parents. Not a mother with a "special friend".

* * *

The couple didn't speak much as they reached the restaurant. It was packed, but not chaotic. It was a pretty ritzy place after all. The most expensive place in Central. Everyone in the building had to have been in the military, and pretty high up. It was such a grand occasion. Roy Mustang had been campaigning for Fuhrer, and he was at the top of the poles. It was an exciting time, indeed.

"Nice place," Russell remarked as the young couple made their way to the large table where Mustang was seated.

"It is," Winry responded, "I don't think I've ever been here-"

"_Edward, I'm...in love with you."_

Winry halted, her heals clicking hard against the floor.

_This place..._

"Something wrong, sergeant?" Roy Mustang's voice said from their assigned table.

"_Something wrong, Fullmetal?"_

Yes, this place was familiar. Winry looked over to the ballroom floor. Her and Ed once danced there. She told him she loved him for the first time there.

"Winry?" Russell asked, stepping in front of her reminiscent gaze. "What's up?"

She looked at him, and then hesitated before answering, "N-nothing. Let's sit down."

After everyone ate their delicious, yet terribly expensive dinners, Roy mustang began to make a speech. There were camera lights flashing from all different directions and she spotted a video camera recording the whole thing. She had never seen one in real life before. This moment could very well go down in history. At the end of his speech, Roy made a long list of people he would like to thank. Winry among them.

And then...

"I would also like to give out a very special thank you to someone. Without this person, the military would still be in corruption and I would not be granted such a wonderful opportunity. He taught us so many valuable life lessons. He taught us to cherish what we have and protect what made us human. He changed Amestris for the better," Roy held up his wine glass and Winry could have swore that she saw Roy glance at her.

"No fuckin' way," Russell muttered under his breath as he lifted up his glass.

"Here's to Edward Elric. May his soul rest in peace."

She didn't have a choice. Slowly, she lifted up her glass, as did everyone else, and took a small sip that was difficult to swallow.

_Protect what made us human._

Her heart was fluttering. She wanted to cry. She didn't want Russell next to her.

Winry waited another hour before asking Russell if they could leave. She didn't want to make it obvious that Mustang's speech upset her by leaving so soon.

"_Oh, c'mon, you're not tired all ready?"_

His voice was so clear in her head. She could even remember what he felt like when he kissed her that night. His hands on her hips. The exhaustion and the excitement.

She wanted to feel it again. So bad. But she would never get it. Never ever. No matter how much she prayed. No matter how much her heart twisted.

He was gone.

* * *

"Why are you walking so fast?" Russell asked trying to keep up with her pace.

Winry turned to him. To Russell. She realized it now. Why she continued to stay with him. Russell was a cover-up. He took her thoughts away from Edward.

He was just some half-ass replacement.

But she needed him. To stay sane.

All the lights were off inside of the large house. Russell reached the door first and Winry followed quickly behind. Before the tall man could open the door, Winry wrapped her arms around his waist from behind.

He quickly turned to her, and she kissed him without warning. It was a hotly passionate kiss that practically screamed lust at him. So hungry. So desperate.

Russell didn't object, of course.

It was hard for them to make their way to the bedroom while trying to stay silent and take their clothes off at the same time. He would push her up against the wall as he slid the thin straps to her little, black dress off her shoulders. Russell's lips and teeth attacked her neck and Winry panted heavily as she struggled with unbuckling his belt.

By the time the two reached Winry's bed, Russell was kicking off his pants and clad in only his boxers and her in her undergarments. Winry pulled him down on top of her.

"_Wh-what are...you..."_

She heard his voice again. And she kissed Russell harder. How could she be thinking about him at a time like this?

"_Oh god..."_

Winry pressed her hips against his impatiently, causing Russell to let out a low groan and bite her neck.

Breathlessly, he said, "Marry me, Winry."

* * *

"SONOFABITCH" Edward roared, his teeth clenched and his face heated. He couldn't even look beyond that line,

_He asked me to marry him right then and there. _

Did he really want to continue reading? Did he really want to find out what happened that night?

_...Did she say yes?_

_

* * *

  
_

Russell didn't give her enough time to respond, he had slid one hand beneath her panties and another under her bra. His fingers were working quickly and her mind was flooded with pleasure.

Still, his question still lingered there. Marry Russell? No, she couldn't. No way. She would be committing to the hugest lie ever. But what else would their relationship lead to? She would just be leading him on.

His fingers were now moving in and out of her rapidly, his mouth on her uncovered breast.

"Nnn," She moaned, feeling her climax creeping up as she threw her head back.

She was completely lost in this false ecstasy. Her mind blending with what was real and not. Where was she? She was with Russell? But why? She was only kidding herself. There was only one man for her. Dead or not.

"Edward!" She moaned as she felt her pleasure reach it's peak.

It happened so quickly, like a blur. One moment she was laying in her bed, trying to recuperate from her orgasm, the next she was crying, pleading Russell to come back to bed with her.

"Russell, it's n-not what you,"

"I know what I heard, Winry." He said quickly, throwing his shirt back on.

"Please don't go, please. We can...we can do whatever you want. Please, Russell."

"You know, Winry," Russell said, turning sharply to the crying blonde, "It's hard to make love to someone when they're still in love with someone else." He put a hand up to his forehead and chuckled slightly. "I can't believe I was being fooled this whole time. I can't believe I told you I loved you. I asked you to _marry_ me for Christ sakes. I should have saw this coming."

Russell waited for her to say something, but she didn't. She had betrayed Russell. She betrayed herself. She betrayed Ed. Winry was a mess.

"I'm leaving," He said as he pulled open the door and walked through.

"Wait, come back..." She said in barely a whisper. "Don't leave me too..."

* * *

Edward shut the book suddenly, the sound of Winry's heels coming up the stairs.

"Edward?" She heard her voice say before she began turning the knob.

For some reason, hearing her voice right then really pissed him off. Was she going to keep this a secret from him forever? When was she planning on telling him this? What the _hell_ was she thinking when she was with Russel?

"Hey there," She said joyfully as she opened the door. "What have you been...up...What's wrong...?" Winry inquired upon seeing Ed's furious face. She let out a yelp as he threw the small book in his hand at the wall beside her, causing it to make a thunderous noise. Winry looked down at her journal that now laid at her feet. "Wh-what..."

"When the hell were you planning on telling me, Winry? Huh?" He rasped, his eyes glaring knives into her. "When were you planning on telling me that you were fooling around with that bastard, Tringham, while I was gone?"

Her heard began to beat rapidly. He had never been so angry at her, and to be honest...

it was terrifying.

It was like he was looking into the eyes of one of his enemies.

"Edward, let me explain..."

"You don't need to explain anything." He growled, grabbing his coat and throwing it on. "I don't want to hear the story twice. I'll be sick."

"Edward, will you just listen?" She pleaded as he walked by her and out of the bedroom. "I never stopped thinking about you!" Winry already had streams of tears trickling down her cheeks.

"You stayed with him anyway."

"Why would you read my diary Ed? I thought you were better than that." She kept a distance as she followed him downstairs.

"I would have never learned the truth. Or I would have never known the whole story."

Winry stopped at the last stair once he said that, and he turned to her.

"Are you saying that I would lie to you, Ed?"

"You lied to him. For a long ass time, Winry."

"Don't you do that Edward. Don't you compare yourself to him." She said, grinding her teeth together. "You never listen. You never hear anyone else's side to the story."

Edward ducked once he saw the wrench flying at his head. It missed. Barely.

"Why don't you continue then. You were about to leave weren't you? Then go!" She said, picking up another wrench. "Get the _fuck_ out!" She flung the mechanical tool at his head. Followed by a screw driver, and Ed was out the door by the time she had picked up her saw.

Edward slammed the door behind him and leaned against it, standing there in silence for a moment. And then he heard a whimper and slowly cracked open the door.

She was collapsed on her knees now, her face buried into her palms as she sobbed. "Disgusting," She whimpered. "So disgusting. I'm disgusting." She repeated over and over again.

So maybe now he was feeling like he took things a little too far. But Winry coming home so soon didn't give him a chance to calm down and organize his thoughts.

_What should I do now?_ He asked himself as she made his way toward the main street. Risembool was probably the best option for now. Besides, Al's birthday was in about a week. He suspected there would be a lot of familiar faces there.

He had a week.

_A week to decide what I'm going to do._

_

* * *

  
_

Elizabeth bounced up the stairs to the front door and opened it. "Hello!" She exclaimed happily before seeing her mother sitting on the floor, holding her knees, her eyes swollen.

"Mama!" The toddler said quickly as she dropped her book bag and made her way toward Winry. "What's wrong? Are you hurting somewhere?" Once her daughter embraced her, Winry couldn't help but start crying once again.

"Yeah, Liz, Mama's hurting." Winry's voice cracked, hugging her child back tightly, tears building up in her eyes again.

Liz kissed Winry's cheek. "There. A kiss to make it all better, like you do for me." She said with a smile and Winry sniffled.

"Thanks Elizabeth." It did help a little bit to see her daughters smiling face. She had _his_ smile, though.

"Where's mister Edward?" Liz asked.

"He left."

"Why?"

"Because," Winry sniffled. "He doesn't like Mama very much anymore."

"Whaaat?" Liz huffed. "That's dumb. Who couldn't like my mama?"

Winry smiled and stroked the top of Liz's head.

_I could name two people_.

* * *

Thanks for reading. I wrote a longer chapter since it took me so long to update.

I hope you enjoyed it.

Don't be shy to review and tell me what you thought!

I really enjoy reading them! They're what keep me updating faster.

Thanks,

Amber


	10. Party plans

Hey guys, I know it's been a while since I've updated, but I didn't have access to a computer for a while. Don't worry, I've brainstormed and written down the next few chapters. This chapter includes a lot of Alphonse, since he _is_ one of my favorite characters. And I feel as though he needs a relationship in this story. With who? Keep reading to find out!

Enjoy

I am Here for Good, Darling

Chapter 10

"Wah tickut ta risembool puh-leeease."

The station worker looked down at the young, blond man with a bruised eye, whose breath smelled heavily of alcohol. It wasn't uncommon for the train station to receive drunk men, especially at three o'clock in the morning, but most of them usually slept on the benches. They never bought tickets.

"Excuse me?" The station worker said, unable to comprehend the man through his slurring and mispronunciation. "Where was it that you wanted to go?"

The young man glared at the station worker before saying, "Wha'sa matter with ya? I _said,_ 'I wou like wah tickut tah RISEMBOOL.'" He dug into his wallet and slapped a mess of crumpled money down onto the counter while staring at the woman with impatient golden eyes.

* * *

Previously that night, Edward Elric had been kicked out of a bar in Central for starting a fight with a soldier. The bastard was asking it, if you asked him. He had the nerve to come up to Ed while he was enjoying his sixth glass of bourbon, and ask "Hey, aren't you Edward Elric?"

Edward had scowled and said, "Can'cha see I'm tryin' to enjoy my drink?"

The young soldier's eyes lit up. "It _is_ you! Wow, I can't believe it. Everyone thinks you die-".

The soldier was cut off by Edward clipping the soldier in his jaw with his metal fist. For Ed, the rest was a little hazy.

But, what did it matter? Ed wasn't planning on returning to Central for a while. He wasn't welcome.

"Ah'm such a asshole." He admitted to himself, leaning back into the cushioned train seat before pulling out a small bottle of whiskey from his coat pocket. He took a large swig of the bitter liquid and swallowed it as if it was water.

Edward looked at his reflection in the window. Everyone thought he was dead, and he sure looked the part. His empty gaze, his unenthusiastic walk, and he was alone. A walking corpse. He had Winry in his grasp, something he had dreamed about for years, and then he lost her again. Because he was an idiot. What was he thinking? He had no right to blame her for anything or take his anger out on her. He wanted to forget the guilt he carried with him for treating her like that, so he decided to drink himself stupid, but of course it only made him feel worse.

On that thought, Ed took another large drink from the glass bottle.

* * *

"Lieutenant Rockbell, maybe if you-"

Winry looked up from the tank's engine and shot her assistant a look of annoyance. "Shut-up! Don't tell me what I should do. You're the assistant. Act like it."

Wide-eyed, the soldier's mouth shut immediately and Winry looked back to the engine. She picked up her monkey wrench and tightened a bolt.

"Alright, try that." Winry ordered the soldier sitting in the driver's seat of the armored vehicle. Nothing happened, and after a moment she yelled, "I said turn the tank on!"

"I tried!" The soldier called from inside the tank. "Nothing happened."

The mechanic let out a large, frustrated growl before slapping the tray of tools off her work table, causing both soldiers to jump. Fixing an engine was usually a simple task for the lieutenant. What was wrong with her? Why couldn't she think straight?

"Winry?" Riza Hawkeye's inquiring voice broke Winry's troubled thoughts. "The Fuhrer would like to see you."

The blond mechanic released a sigh and began walking out of the garage, muttering a "sorry" as she passed her assistant.

* * *

Winry had never really been to Roy's office before. It was ample, and too spacious for one man. It made Winry's desk in the garage look like a joke. There was a bar that Winry guessed was used fairly often since Roy seemed to always bring his dates back to his office. Knowing that, Winry didn't have to second guess what the couch was usually used for.

"Lieutenant. Come in." Roy's voice sounded unusually inviting, making Winry relieved that he wasn't upset with her. Not that she was frightened of getting fired. Riza wouldn't allow it.

"You wanted to see me, sir?"

"Yes. Why don't you have a seat?" Roy offered, waving his hand toward his couch.

"Uh," Winry grimaced slightly, looking down at the seemingly clean couch. "No thanks."

"Very well." Roy said, shuffling through the papers on his desk, probably to make it look as though he was just hard at work. Riza was at his side as usual. "Tell me lieutenant, how have things been at home?"

"Home?" Winry couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. "What's this about?"

Riza and Roy glanced at each other, causing Winry to feel like the world was keeping a secret from her.

"Winry," Riza started, her voice somewhat soothing, which really made Winry nervous. "Your behavior lately has been a little...different."

The lieutenant let out a nervous chuckle, "I don't understand..."

"You missed work two days in a row without telling anyone why, you've snapped at soldiers, and you've been falling behind at work." Roy folded his hands in front of his mouth and stared into Winry's eyes. "You're not in trouble, lieutenant, we're just worried about you."

Winry could have broken down right then and there, cried, and confessed everything, but she was afraid. For Ed's sake. What would they do if they found out that Ed was really alive for all these years, doing God-knows-what?

"What's troubling you? Is it a man?" Of course Roy, the relationship expert, would guess right.

"It's nothing, really. It's just-"

"Sir!" The doors of Roy's office slammed open, and Lieutenant Fuery ran in, nearly tripping over his own feet. That's when Winry noticed the line of dry blood starting from his swollen lip and trailing down his chin.

"What happened to you?" Roy asked, standing up from his seat.

"You're never gonna guess who I ran into," He began, breathlessly.

"Lieutenant, calm down-"

"Edward Elric!"

The entire office went quiet, and Winry bit her bottom lip before turning to Roy, who was already staring back at her.

"Well, now I know what's been bothering you."

* * *

Alphonse Elric always enjoyed taking walks with Den in the morning. Every Wednesday, he'd pick flowers from one of Risembool's many sunflower fields and bring them to his mother's grave. Up until recently, he'd stop by his brother's grave, too.

Al had tried to convince everyone that digging Edward a grave was unnecessary, but every time he suggested waiting, everyone told him it was time to give up his hope. The younger Elric wasn't one to say "I told you so", but he was right. Deep down, Al knew he would see his older brother again. Alive, not just in his dreams.

And it was true, Edward had returned, but Al didn't sense that energy that his brother had always emitted. It was almost as if his motivation that kept him going had dissolved. Al guessed it had something to do with where Ed was for the past couple of years.

_In that place. The lonely place._

Al snapped out of his trance once he heard Den bark loudly. "What is it?"

Den barked again before taking of, running as fast as his old legs would allow him, into the cemetery. Al followed, almost losing the old dog in the sea of tombstones. "Where are you, boy?" Al whispered, before looking up at the highest grave on the small hill, his mother's grave, where a figure sat, perched up against the cold stone.

He stopped dead in his tracks, watching as Den ran up to the man and examined him before licking his face. Al knew exactly who it was.

"Edward?" The younger Elric said faintly as he approached his brother slowly. Before he reached Ed, his foot bumped into something on the ground, making a small _tink_. Al looked down and picked up the small glass bottle.

_Alcohol?_

What a sight that was for Alphonse. There his older brother was, passed out from drinking, in front of his own mother's grave. With a black eye, no less.

Al swallowed his sudden rush of anger and knelled down in front of Ed, placing a hand on his shoulder, and shaking him until he got some kind of reaction. Edward let out a frustrated groan and squinted, unable to open his eyes completely because of the morning sun's excruciating rays.

Now that Edward was up, Al decided to say something. "What were you thinking, Ed, huh?"

Edward cringed and placed a hand hand on his forehead. "Fuck Al, quit yelling." Although his younger brother's tone was no where near loud.

Finally Edward opened his eyes once Al roughly grabbed his coat. "Don't you dare curse in front of our Mother's grave."

It took Ed a moment to realize where he was, or what even happened last night. All he knew was that he was hungover, freezing, and his eye was killing him.

"Look at yourself, Ed." Al said, his tone a little more calm, "You're a mess. What would Mom think?"

Ed mumbled something, condensation from the cold February air escaping his lips.

"Wh-" Al started, but hushed once he saw a single tear roll down his brother's cheek.

"I'm sorry." Ed's quiet voice shook and he felt goosebumps form on his skin. He wouldn't have cried in the presence of anyone else besides Al, but the fact that he was crying, and showing some kind of emotion, made him feel alive again.

* * *

After a hot shower, food, and and ice pack for his bruised eye, it was safe to say that Edward was feeling a great deal better. Physically. He still felt terrible about degrading himself in front of his mother's grave, and about the whole ordeal with Winry. Thank god for Alphonse. Edward probably would have caught pneumonia if it wasn't for his little brother.

The two Elrics were now sitting in Al's room, which used to be the room the brothers stayed in when visiting. It was clean and organized, something that didn't surprise Ed, and it had a very wide variety of Alchemy books on his bookshelf and desk. There were two beds, one of which Ed claimed as his own for the time being.

"Brother, tell me about it."

"About what?"

"The place." Al hesitated. "Where you've been. The other side of the Gate."

Ed laid back onto the bed, folding his arms behind his head. "You mean, the other world."

Al swallowed. "Another world? What was it like..?"

"Well..." Ed started as he tried mustering up interesting facts about the God-awful world he had just been confined in. "For one, technology had taken a different path than it had here. There were these flying machines used for traveling and war." Ed looked over at his brother, whose eyes were bright and concentrating as if he was being told a bedtime story. "And, there was also..." Ed paused, trying to think of a way to best explain the next phenomenon, "A double for everyone from this world. They all shared the same face, but their personality didn't make the part. There was someone who looked almost exactly like you, Rose, Hughes...Winry..."

The room fell silent before Ed decided to speak again. "And there was no alchemy."

"No alchemy?!" Al's adolescent voice broke out into the solemn atmosphere.

Ed couldn't help but chuckle. "Man, I would have reacted the exact same way about six years ago."

Al smiled. "You haven't lost your touch, have you Brother?"

The older brother sat up on the bed again and stretched his arms out. "Wouldn't know. I haven't tried using alchemy since I've got back."

"But, you were one of the best alchemists out there. Maybe if you got back into it, you could get your State Alchemist title back."

"There ain't no way I'm joining the dumb military again. Not now that there's no reason to."

"But you have a family now."

Edward felt his face flush out. It was embarrassing to think about, but Ed _did_ have a family, no matter how dysfunctional it was. Having a child seemed so unreal, and it scared Ed.

"Thanks, by the way." Ed said, as he stood up and began walking over to Al's bookcase.

Al tilted his head slightly to the side. "For what? ...Ow!" Al moaned as one of his books pelted his forehead.

"For letting me walk into that...that death-trap!"

"What?"

"You let me go back to Winry's house without letting me know I had a kid. A kid, for chrissakes!"

"What's wrong? Don't you like Elizabeth?"

Ed sighed. "It's not that..."

The room fell silent for a moment, making Al feel uncomfortable, until the door opened slowly. Rose peeked her head in, oblivious to Ed standing by the bookshelf. Edward watched as she smiled down at Al before saying. "I'm going into town to get things for your party. Would you like to come?"

And then Ed couldn't believe it, but Al blushed and said, "Y-yeah. I'll be down in a moment..."

With that, Rose closed the door and began walking down the stairs.

Now Al was _really _uncomfortable. It wasn't just the awkward silence that sat between the two brothers, but it was also the ridiculous grin that Edward was giving him.

"_What_?" Al scoffed, flustered, as he threw the book back toward Ed. Ed dodged the book, bolted toward his brother before he could escape, and caught him in a head lock.

Above Al's protests and whines, Ed laughed and said, "You like her, don't you?"

"Do not!" Al squeaked, unsuccessfully squirming to get out of his brother's hold.

"Oh, my baby brother's in love."

"Brother, _stop_ it."

"Fine," Ed chuckled as he released his brother from his grasp. He didn't know if Al's face was ruby red from anger, or embarrassment, but it was hilarious to him. It brought Edward an abundance of joy to _see_ his little brother's reactions, rather than just hear.

Even with Al's piqued face, Ed ruffled his little brother's hair.

* * *

"How's Edward doing?"

Al took Rose's heavy grocery bag from her arms. "He's fine. He still seems a little empty, but he's much better than when he got back." The two were now almost back to the house from a day of grocery shopping. Just the two of them.

"Well, that's good." Rose enthused, "So, what would you like for your birthday this year?"

Al smiled, "Oh, you don't have to get me anything Rose."

_But, now that Ed's home, there's just one wish that I want to come true._

"Such a typical answer for you, Alphonse." Rose looked down at the ground, trying to hide her reddened cheeks. "You're too good to me, sometimes."

Al swallowed, hard. "You deserve it, Rose." He reached down, opened the door and took a step inside. "You deserves someone who..." Alphonse had no idea where all of this new-found confidence was coming from, but the words were practically spilling from his mouth.

"Someone who...what, Al?" Her voice had become intrigued in what the young Elric was confessing to her. "What is it, Al?" Rose urged.

"Someone who cares...about you..." The two were now face to face, and Al always took time out of moments like this to admire Rose's perfection. Her olive skin, dark eyes, and natural beauty. She was a woman who never took anything for granted and Al truly respected her. Even through the eyes of an armored shell, Al had always had a deep desire for Rose. Well, he had a body now. It was time he put it to use. After five long years of doubt and timorous thoughts, Al finally felt that it was his moment to shine.

She was right there, in front of him, pulling her face closer to his own. The beating of his heart was almost unbearable by the time he felt her hot, sweet breath on his lips.

"Hey, Al? That you?" Ed called from the top of the stairs, before he began descending down the steps. "Thank God, I'm starving." And Ed noticed, by the time he reached the bottom of he steps, just how irritated his brother looked, and Rose didn't look much happier. "Uh, am I interrupting something?"

"Eat _this_!" Al yelled, picking up the heavy bag of groceries and flinging it across the room at Edward.

* * *

It had been a tough week for Winry at work. There were a lot of questions and not enough answers. None that Winry could provide, anyway.

_I knew it. I should have asked Ed more about where he was._

Roy had really given her a hard time about it, but she convinced him not to search for Ed right away. She thought it would be more ideal to reunite with Edward casually, and not with a team of military soldiers. Which was why Winry decided to invite Roy and Riza to Alphonse's birthday party. They would be arriving on the day of the party, but Winry always showed up a day early every year.

"How old is Uncle Al turning this year?" Elizabeth asked happily, her face pressed up against the train's window.

Winry always had to think about this question before answering. Mentally, Al was turning twenty-one, but physically, he was turning eighteen.

"Is this seat taken?" A familiar voice said, catching Winry off guard. Elizabeth squealed with joy, but Winry wasn't so thrilled.

"Russell...what are you doing here?" Winry sighed as the tall blond took a seat next to her.

"Don't act so surprised," Russell answered, putting on the usual, handsome smirk. "I come with you every year to Alphonse's party."

"You only came for two years, Russell."

"I don't want to break the chain, I suppose." He shrugged and pulled out a chocolate bar. "And I have a gift for my favorite little girl." Elizabeth was delighted.

"Well, where's Fletcher?"

"He was busy. So it's just going to be me and you." Russell had always been so damn persistent.

Winry leaned her head back against the seat and groaned. Not only was it going to be difficult dealing with Ed herself, but the military had to stick their noses in. And now Russell?

_This is going to be one hell of a party._

* * *

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please review and tell me what you thought. And about Den, I couldn't remember whether he/she was a boy or a girl, so sorry if I was wrong. My next update won't take so long and I hope to include more on Al and Rose's relationship, as well as another relationship. Don't forget to review!


	11. Equivalent Exchange's Wrath

I Am Here For Good, Darling

Chapter 11

* * *

"Their train shouldn't be arriving for another couple of hours. Why don't you help set up?" Rose said, holding an armful of streamers.

Ed looked away from the family room's window and over at her. He had grown antsy waiting for Winry's arrival. He knew the first thing he wanted to do was apologize, though he also knew before he could say anything, there would be wrenches to dodge.

"Yeah, okay." He groaned, pushing himself off of the sofa. Ed realized he couldn't just mope around the house all day, thinking about all the terrible things he said to Winry. It was starting to get to the point where he was exaggerating the fight in his head, making the memory far worst then it actually was. In his thoughts, he was a terrible monster, roaring at Winry, calling her a lying bitch, along with other terms he wouldn't even think about calling her in his lifetime. There was another thought that crossed his mind: If he ever lost Winry, would that mean that he would lose Elizabeth, too?

For some reason, that thought really struck some sort of emotional chord in his heart, causing him to swallow some kind of sadness he couldn't put his finger on. That little girl really got to him.

_But that's only natural right? I am her father, after all._

Edward paused for a moment as he held up the steamers, and then he clenched the delicate paper in his fists.

_DAMN IT! THAT MAKES ME SOUND SO OLD!_

The battle inside of his head must have been apparent to Rose, because she asked, "Edward? Are you okay?"

Ed stopped suddenly and looked at the brunette. "Er, yeah." He dropped the streamers. "I'm going to go look for Al."

"...Alright." Rose said, obviously still befuddled.

* * *

"She always falls asleep on trains, huh?" Russell asked quietly. Not that he needed to keep his voice down; The kid slept like a rock.

"Mhm," Winry answered stroking the top of Liz's head as the toddler laid her head in her mother's lap.

"How have you been?" He asked, leaning forward and resting his hands in his lap.

The mechanic gave a slight shrug. She didn't want to come right out and tell him that Ed was home. He might think that she was in some sort of denial stage, making Ed come back home as a figment of her imagination. Thus, he would declare her insane. Russell would just have to see the Elric with his own eyes. The reunion was going to be a magical one, indeed.

"You know Winry," Russell said smoothly, sitting back up straight to look at her, "I've been thinking."

_Oh God, here it comes. _Winry thought unpleasantly as she saw a familiar handsome smirk dance across his lips. The same smirk he had on his face when he asked her out for the first time.

"It's been over a year since we broke up, and I'm sure that you've had time to," He paused, "_think_ about things."

She raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Russell cleared his throat. "What I _mean_, is that you've had more time to accept _Edward _being gone." It seemed that he had some difficulty saying Edward's name, as if he had been jealous of Edward for most of his life. "He's gone, Winry, and he's never coming back. I think he would have wanted you to move on."

_Like hell he did._ Winry thought with a bit of frustration. "You think so?" She asked, trying to play along, and wishing she would arrive at Risembool already.

"Yeah," He smiled as if he was actually getting somewhere with this whole situation, and slid his hand on top of hers. "I miss being with you Winry. It hasn't been the same without you, gorgeous."

Gorgeous. It was his little pet name for when the two were together. Winry had always hated it. She would much rather be called, "Win" or "Machine Junkie".

He grasped her hand, "So are you ready to try this again?" Russell had always had so much confidence, and it was the kind that was tough to break through.

"Not really," She said flatly, an impatient smile plastered on her face, and his face had been struck blank. "A lot of things have changed since we've been apart, Russell."

"What are you talking about?" His voice carried obvious disgruntlement, "Are you with someone else?" If that were the case, Russell would still put up a fight. What did this chump have that he didn't?

"Well," Winry started. She wasn't really _with_ Edward. Not at the moment anyway. "It's complicated."

_Why won't this train move any faster?_

_

* * *

_"Hey, Al." Edward greeted as he walked out to front porch. Alphonse was hanging up a "Happy Birthday!" banner above the front door. That was so like his little brother to help decorate for his own party.

"Hey, Brother," He murmured back, almost apathetically.

"Oh, c'mon, you're not still mad about the other day, are you?" True, Edward completely ruined Al's chance at receiving his first kiss from the woman he loved, but he couldn't stay mad at him forever. Right? "Look, I said I was sorry." Ed fussed.

Alphonse sighed as he finished hammering the last nail, and climbed down the small latter. "It's alright, Brother, it's not your fault." He sat down on the porch's steps, Edward following.

"Winry should be coming soon."

Ed let out an exasperated sigh, "Yeah, I know. My head's already throbbing, and she hasn't even pelted me with one of her tools yet."

"You must have really messed things up."

"Okay, let's not rub it in, Al." Ed leaned back, and there was a moment of silence before he said, "So what do you think of Elizabeth?"

The younger Elric had to pause, think about the question, and then think about why his brother was asking it. "Liz? She's a total sweetheart. Granny says she acts like you when you were her age."

"Yeah?"

"Uh-huh." Al said with a warm smile, "And she's pretty strong considering she was a miracle baby."

"Miracle baby?" Ed inquired.

Then, Al bit his lip, looking almost worried that he said something he probably shouldn't have. "Oh, Winry didn't tell you?"

"Tell me _what?_" Ed urged, now nervous of Al's change in facial expression.

"Well," Al started, a look of discomfort settled on his face as if he was thinking about a difficult memory. "Both Winry and Elizabeth almost died while Winry was giving birth."

The older Elric stared at his brother for a moment before burying his forehead into his palm. "Christ," He said, his voice low. "How?"

"Winry...She was too weak to give birth to Elizabeth. They had to take her into the operating room."

_Weak? That doesn't sound like Winry at all..._

Al continued, as if he knew exactly what his brother was thinking. "She was a wreck without you. The pregnancy was hard for her." Al looked straight ahead and distant as he remembered those terrible nine months. "She wouldn't let anyone help her."

"Damn it." Ed cursed, slamming his fist down on the wooden porch and startling Al. "That damn equivalent exchange. I thought my soul would be enough for your life, Al." He ran his hand through his bangs. "I risked Winry's life, too. I put her through so much."

"Brother..."

Ed let out a distressed chuckle. "Equivalent exchange's wrath. The story of our life, huh, Al?"

"Yeah..." Al responded with a saddened smile.

* * *

Waiting. Edward often did it back in the old days. The days where he and his little brother, whose soul was still locked up in a hunk of armor, would pursue the Philosopher's Stone. He waited for answers, leads, and anything he would need to reach his goals.

Back then, on those few fateful days in Central's hospital after Winry had gone missing, he waited.

But back in Germany, he never had to wait. There was nothing he anticipated. He really believed that he would never see Amestris again. It was depressing and it made Edward kind of miss the suspense.

Or not.

_God, where is she?_ The young man thought as he stared out the bedroom's window. His heart pace would speed every time someone would walk by the house. He couldn't wait to see her, but at the same time, he could.

"Brother, they'll be here soon. Stop waiting around by the window."

"That's alright, Al, the only thing I've done since I've been here is wait." Edward exhaled a sigh, and just as he was about to get up and get some food, he identified a small human figure with golden hair begin to appear as it ascended over one of Risembool's hills.

"Elizabeth." Edward said, instinctively.

She was racing toward the Rockbell home, her arms opened, and an excited look smothered on her adorable face.

_Alright, so that must mean..._

Yes. There she was, following Liz's path toward the yellow home, but in a much slower pace. Edward sighed again, preparing his speech he was going to give her once she gave him the chance.

_Wait a minute. Who's that?_ Edward questioned as a tall, blond man followed closely behind Winry, his hands in his pockets.

Cocky smirk.

_No._

Shaggy, perfect locks.

_Fucking._

Suspenders.

_Way._

Edward took off from the bedroom, nearly tripping over his own feet as he sprinted toward the the front door. Alphonse had obviously already figured out about Winry's surprise guest, because he managed to hold the raging Edward back for a moment.

"Brother," He struggled, trying to contain his brother, "Calm down. Let's be rational here."

"Let...go, Al!" Ed roared, "I have a fucking score to settle."

"Language!" Rose scolded as she was holding a bewildered Liz. Edward didn't notice. His eyes were fixed on the front door, trying to break loose from his brother's hold like an outraged bull trying to break through it's cage. Finally, Edward battled his way out of his brother's grip and bolted toward the door, where he flung it open, nearly ripping it off it's hinges.

His fist raised to knock on the door, Russell stood on the other side with Winry. He already had his 'Oh-it's-so-good-to-see-you' face on, but it quickly changed. There was a brief moment of curiosity, as if he was trying to figure out what exactly he was looking at. A trick?

_No...It can't be..._

"What's wrong, Tringham, you bastard?" Edward rasped behind a malevolent grin, "You look like you've just seen a ghost."

"Edward Elric?!" Russell yelled, and Liz looked at him quickly. "What the..." Russell started, but soon took off before he could finish his sentence once Edward joined his hands together.

The blond alchemist still had that evil grin displayed, and a familiar fire lit up his golden eyes. In a quick, fluid motion, Ed brought his hands down, his palms slapping against the wood of the porch. The energy in his body seemed to surge giving him an excitement that he missed dearly. Why didn't he use alchemy sooner?

Russell was still trying to make a run for it, but dived behind a large oak tree once he looked back and discovered the large, earthly thorns that Edward had transmuted in his direction.

Edward began making his way toward Russell, clasping his hands for a second time. Oh, what euphoria it had brought him to be using alchemy again! And on Russell? It really was a two-for-one deal.

"What the hell," Russell yelled from behind the tree. "You're supposed to be on the other side of the gate. It's impossible!"

"Yeah, well," Edward said with a sinister chuckle as he transmuted his automail into the familiar blade, "I suppose I worked my way out just to fuck with you. I heard about some funny business that involved you," He said, inching closer to the tree Russell was taking refuge behind, oblivious to the transmutation circle Russell was carving into the bark. "And _my_ woman."

"Aren't you going to stop them, or something?" Al asked Winry as he held his niece in his arms. Elizabeth was completely enthralled in the battle, her heart racing every time Ed transmuted something.

"No." Winry answered. "Russell needs to learn his place. He needs to realize that he can't replace Edward."

_I realized it a long time ago._

"Why don't you come out from hiding?" Edward taunted, pointing his steel blade at his opponent. He felt like he was fighting one of the homunculus or maybe even Scar, though Russell was probably as much as a challenge as one of the petty Nazis back in Germany.

"I'm not hiding," Russell said, almost chuckling as he raised a hand to activate his transmutation circle. He was an alchemist, too, after all.

Once Edward caught sight of the glowing red light from Russell's transmutation, he leaped backwards, but he wasn't quick enough. A root from the tree shot up from the soil and grabbed a hold of Ed's ankles. Edward fell back, but quickly sliced away the root with his blade before regaining his balance. "You're going to have to do better than that, you bastard!" Before Russell had time to think, Edward clasped his hands once more and set them on the ground, causing the earth below Russell's feet to rise and catapult him backwards. Just as Edward began to charge toward his opponent to deliver the finishing blow, he felt a hard hunk of steel nail him right in the temple.

Winry didn't go easy on him; She used the biggest wrench she had, and it knocked Edward out cold.

* * *

"_Alfons? Yo, Alfons I'm back!"_ _Edward called out into his small, crowded apartment. It was late, and Alfons Heiderich should have returned home from the lab before Edward._

"_In here, Edward." A voice called out from Edward's room, but it wasn't Alfons's._

_The twenty-two year old was cautious at first, but realized just how familiar the voice that called to him was._

"_Dad?"_

_Edward slowly walked into his bedroom, only to quickly step back out once he saw what his father had done._

_Transmutation circles covered the floor, walls, and ceiling. _

"_Wh-what have you done? Alchemy? Impossible..." Ed asked his father, who was sitting on the edge of his bed, looking almost troubled. _

"_Not this time Edward." Hohenheim responded, "I'm going to help you. Please, step on the circle, son."_

"_Like hell I am!" Ed snapped, taking another step back. Something about this whole situation made his stomach churn. It was the same feeling he had just as he was about to attempt to bring his mother back to life._

"_It's for your own good, Ed." Alfons's voice said quietly behind Ed._

_Alfons shoved Ed, causing him to lose balance with his bad leg, and he fell on to the wooden floor. "Goodbye Edward. And...Goodbye...Hohenheim."_

"_What? What the hell are you-" Just as Ed began to speak, a large white light lit up the dark room, and he looked to his father. "Don't tell me..."_

_His father was going to sacrifice himself to allow Ed to return home._

"_Goodbye, Edward. Say goodbye to Alphonse for me."_

_And then those arms. Those snaky, black little arms. They held him with such force, Ed felt like he was under some sort of heavy pressure. He couldn't breath._

_The arms drug him to the familiar gate. Edward was screaming his heart out._

"_What's wrong, Edward. Isn't this what you wanted?" The gate spoke to him._

"_Not like this." Ed was weeping. "Not like this."_

_Then, his mother appeared, like she always had, and just like the other times, Edward reached out to her. And just as she was inches away from his hand, he was pulled away. _

_It was like some cruel game, and he lost every time._

_

* * *

_Edward's eyes shot open with a gasp, but he couldn't see right away. Everything was blurry on account of the tears the pooled in his eyes. He blinked, the tears running down the side of his head, and suddenly everything came into focus.

The room was somewhat dark, telling him that it was the early evening, and after a few moments he realized he was in Al's bedroom, laying down on his own bed.

"Mister Edward? Why are you sad?"

The blond alchemist nearly jumped out of his skin once he heard the toddler's young voice ring in his ear. He looked to the side of his bed, and into her big, blue eyes that reminded him so much of Winry.

He smiled, and weakly said. "Hey, kiddo."

"Mama hit you with one of her wrenches."

Edward groaned and rubbed the massive bump on his temple. "Yes, I know." And then he sat up.

What was she doing waiting around in the dark for him to wake up?

There was a silence between the two, and she just stood there with a curious look on her face and her hands behind her back. Ed felt as though he was being examined by the young girl.

Winry leaned against the hallway's wall, listening closely to the voices coming from Al's room. She would have waited with her daughter for Ed to wake up, but she didn't feel like being caught in an argument with him once he did. Oddly enough, Elizabeth insisted on being there when Edward woke up.

After a few quiet moments, Edward stood up. "Why don't we go downstairs?"

"Nuh-uh." Elizabeth declined before she tugged softly on Edward's trousers. He looked down at her and she held her arms out to him, her fingers wiggling impatiently.

Edward swallowed.

_That means...She wants to be picked up...right?_

He did just that, bending down and hoisting her up with ease. Ed kept an arm under her bottom and his other arm supportively on her back. He was nervous alright; He didn't want to drop her or hold her the wrong way. Edward obviously had no clue what he was doing.

"Mr. Edward?"

"Yeah?"

She paused, "...Was it cold in the ground?"

"Huh?"

Outside, Winry raised an eyebrow. Alphonse had come up the stairs, and the mechanic put a hand over his mouth before he could disrupt the conversation between Liz and Ed. What exactly was Elizabeth talking about?

"How did you get out? I must have been hard."

Edward tried to chuckle. "Elizabeth, what are you talking about?" But her face was dead serious.

Her daughter's next question caused caused Winry to gasp and cover her own mouth with her hand.

"Mister Edward, are you my daddy?"

* * *

Oh geez, how is Edward going to answer this question? So much for being a prodigy. Haha. And is Winry going to take Ed back? What's going to happen to Russell? Plus, the military is on it's way.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I have some delicious smut planned for the next one. I would like to say "I love you" to all the reviewers. Is it awkward that I told you I loved you? Anyway, You guys are great. And please, if you take the time to read my fic, make sure to leave a review! They're what keeps me motivated to continue on this story. Thanks for reading!


	12. Disaster

I am here for good, darling

Chapter 12

She had always been intuitive, sharp, and adept. Yes, Elizabeth Elric had really inherited all of Edward's best traits. So, it wasn't hard for her to suspect Ed as her father. For one, her mother had such strong feelings for a man Elizabeth had never met before. Also, she knew her father's name was Edward. But, she didn't gather her biggest clue until Russell Tringham called him by his full name, "Edward Elric", before their fight.

But there was one thing that really confused Elizabeth.

"...You dug me a grave." Edward almost chuckled as he looked down at the cold stone that had his name engraved on it. It was such a pitiful, yet ironic situation. He was standing, alive and healthy, in the place where his loved ones once stood, shedding tears for him as his empty casket was lowered into the earth.

"Everyone thought it was the right thing to do." Only Alphonse stood with him now. Nightfall was close and it was almost unbearably chilly outside. "I tried to stop them, Brother."

"What for?" Edward muttered, dolefully. "I should be dead. I shouldn't be here."

"Brother...How could you say that...?"

The older Elric didn't say anything for a moment, as he looked over to his Mother's grave, which sat adjacent to his, before looking back to the cold stone that was his own. "The name on my grave needs to be changed..."

Alphonse looked at his Brother, confused. "Whose name?"

Edward swallowed, not lifting his eyes from the tombstone. "Hohenheim Elric."

* * *

"You know, you're a real piece of work." Winry scoffed, after she had dragged Russell into the kitchen for a 'talk'.

"Me? What did I do? _He_ attacked _me_!" Russell whined.

"That's not what I'm talking about," She glared accusingly at him. "You _knew _Ed was alive all these years. You decided to selfishly keep that to yourself, huh? You knew all this time that there was hope-"

"I didn't!" Russell protested, feeling a familiar sense of jealousy. "I thought he was as good as dead. I thought he would never show up on this side of the gate again." He paused, before he calmed his voice down. "It was for your own good, Winry. It wasn't healthy for you to keep believing that you'd see him again."

Winry took in a deep breath, calming herself down as well. "But he's back now..."

Russell cleared his throat, and for the first time since she had met Russell Tringham, he looked nervous, and even blushed a little. "So, uh, does that mean," He looked at her with sad eyes. "There's no hope...for us?"

Winry smiled sympathetically and shook her head. "I'm afraid not. I don't think there was ever hope to be honest."

"Ouch," Russell said with a chuckle. "Man, I really hate to ask this question, but..." He paused, and held out his hand. "We can still be friends, right?"

"Of course!" Winry answered, a little too quickly as she moved his hand aside and embraced him, his familiar scent reaching her nostrils. True, Russell hadn't been right for her, but that didn't mean he wasn't a good guy. He took her seriously. Most of the time. Well, some of the time. Okay, so maybe Russell had a slight chauvinistic personality, but at least his intentions were good.

In the middle of this constructive, heart-warming moment, the kitchen's screen door opened, and Edward stood in the doorway. Alphonse stood behind him, his facial expression turning somewhat stressed as he witnessed the two older adults hugging each other. He already knew his brother wasn't going to like this.

Winry dropped her arms quickly and stood up straight, nervously clearing her throat. "Oh, Ed..."

He gave her that same look that he had given her about a week ago, after he had read her diary.

"Do what you want." Edward growled lowly as he walked past Russell and Winry, his hands buried in his pockets.

Winry gave out a frustrated sigh, "He's such a jealous idiot. Sorry-" She began to apologize before she looked up at Russell's face, which had a look of accomplishment.

"YOU BOTH ARE JEALOUS IDIOTS!"

* * *

Edward walked into the living room to find Rose reading on the couch, Pinako sorting through wires, and Elizabeth, who was playing with her stuffed giraffe on the floor.

Seeing Elizabeth brought him back to her question.

"_Mister Edward, are you my daddy?_"

He didn't exactly get a chance to respond.

"_Uh, well...You see..."_

"_Liz!" Winry burst into the_ _room with a flustered smile. "I'm about to make an apple pie, do you want to help?!" She was practically hysterical._

"_Do I?!" Elizabeth had answered, now reaching her arms out to her mother from Ed's arms. Thank god for short attention spans and for Winry._

_Winry took Elizabeth into her arms, flashing Ed a 'We'll-talk-about-this-later' look, and leaving him __with __Alphonse in the dark room._

_Al, who had already figured out that his niece had matched Ed's full name up with the name on her father's tomb stone, said, "C'mon, Brother, I have something to show you."_

"You know, that probably wasn't what it looked like." Al said, following Ed into the living room.

"Yeah, probably." Ed glanced over his shoulder at his brother. "But how do you think she would feel if she walked in on me and..." He paused to think of a name, "...Rose hugging each other like that?" Edward watched his brother's face sink into some sort of irritation that almost made him laugh. Rose had looked up from her book upon hearing her name.

"Relax, Al, just a hypothetical situation." Ed chuckled, patting his brother on his shoulder.

* * *

"What time is it?!" Rose's voice suddenly erupted into the living room's homely silence, causing Den to jump to his feet with caution.

"Twenty til' eight." Alphonse responded quickly, looking down at his watch. "Why?"

Relief welcomed Rose as she placed a hand over her heart. "Just enough time. I've got to pick _him_ up from the train station." She said to Al. "Are you coming?"

Ed's eyebrows raised with curiosity as he looked to Al, who looked suddenly irked. "Who're you talking about?" Ed mused.

"_Cody_." The name dragged out of Al's lips like mud, and at the same time, Winry and Russell's faces became disturbed.

Edward looked around at everyone's change in mood; From a domestically sedentary mood, to a tense, thick atmosphere. "Who is this guy? The devil?" Ed joked.

"Close." Alphonse stood up. "You've met him before, Brother."

"Oh please," Rose got to her feet, also. "Would everyone stop acting like my son's some kind of brute?"

_Her son? Oh, right. Rose had a baby just before I left through the gate. The kid has to be five or six by now._

"I'm sure he can't be _that_ bad." Ed reasoned with a small laugh. He, himself, was a handful when he was little.

"Thank you, Edward." Rose praised, gratefully. "Are you coming, Al? Try and be nice."

"You know I always try."

* * *

Alphonse and Rose walked along Risembool's dirt path which ended up at the train station's gate. It was chilly that night, but not as much as most winter nights. Spring was around the corner, and the February nights were welcoming it's warmth, fortunately.

Still, Rose held her hands up to her lips, attempting to let her warm breath heat them up. Alphonse looked over at her and decided to muster up that courage that he had discovered the other day during the two's "almost-kiss".

"Here," The younger Elric grabbed one of Rose's hands and held it in his own between the two. "This will keep at least one of them warm." He smiled at her, causing her face to heat up as well as her hand.

"Thanks, Alphonse." She smiled back at him before looking down at the ground as she walked.

Like she had said before, Alphonse was always too kind to her. And it was true, she had deep feelings for the young man. She had never been treated so nicely, even when she was with her deceased boyfriend, Cain. Rose missed the feeling of adoration and desire, and Al even put up with her juvenile son.

"It looks like the train hasn't arrived yet."

Al's solaced voice caused Rose's head to snap up, and realized that the two had made it to the train station. Fortunately, Al was right. There was no train on the tracks and no Cody waiting on a bench. Her son had always been so impatient.

Rose took a step forward, her hand breaking away from Al's, and watched the stations clock. Al knew she missed her son, and maybe it was unfair to her to send him up to Lior to spend time with close friends. But Cody didn't like Risembool like Rose did, so Rose made the tough decision of leaving him in the desert town.

Al sighed, watching as Rose folded her arms, and shivered. She also probably missed Lior's warmth.

There his courage went again, skyrocketing. He wondered where this new-found bravery came from which caused him to make such audacious moves. Did it have something to do with his older brother coming home?

Or maybe it was because he finally knew that he wanted her more than anything. To be close to her. To hold her.

And he did just that. He walked up behind her and wrapped two strong, yet gentle, arms around her shoulders. Rose let out a soft, quick gasp as she was pulled back into Alphonse's warm body.

"I'll keep you warm, Rose." He said into her ear.

"Alphonse..." Her face was hot now. She could feel his cheek nuzzling her ear, and instantly, she felt safe. Nothing in the whole world could harm her now.

Rose began to turn, her expression pleasantly surprised.

And he caught her in a kiss.

Oh, how Al once dreamed about kissing a girl when he was in his armored shell. What it would feel like. What it would taste like. Now he knew, and the results exceeded his expectations.

Her lips were so very, very soft, and they tasted like the cinnamon from Winry's apple pie when he nipped at them. Rose stood on her toes to match Al's tall stature, and she had her arms wrapped around his neck. She never wanted to stop kissing him; it was like a euphoric drug. It was addicting.

"Ewww, I think I'm gonna barf." A loud, impudent voice shouted from behind the two.

The kiss broke quickly, and Rose looked down at the little boy who had a grimace and his arms crossed.

"Cody!" Rose exclaimed, embarrassed, as she broke away from Al to greet her son. She bent down to hug him and just as she was about to kiss his cheek, he pushed her away. "Gross, don't kiss me. You just swapped spit with _him_." He snarled as he pointed an impolite finger at Al. "Look, _Al_, just because you kissed my mom doesn't mean you'll ever be my dad or something."

Alphonse suddenly swallowed the urge to pull the kid's head off like a doll's. "It's nice to see you, too, Cody." He put on a tight grin. A _very_ tight grin.

"Yeah, whatever." Cody said as he looked up at his mom. "Can we go? It's freezing."

"Of course, dear."

Alphonse didn't even get to hold Rose's hand on the way back.

* * *

Ever since Winry had arrived, she and Ed had been shooting each other death glares. It was quite obvious to everyone around them, but the fight was familiar. Edward found himself in a nostalgic sense of irritation every time she made eye contact with him. But it wasn't strictly irritation.

Winry always had that fire in her eyes.

And Ed had to admit that there was something sexy about her attitude.

Unfortunately, she was hard to get when she was angry, and trying to make her feel better with some sort of romantic affection seemed like a fool's task. Still, even though he would scowl back at her, whenever Winry glared at him, Edward had to bite his tongue and resist the urge to drag her off to the nearest bed.

Maybe he would try that method though, one day, when Russell wasn't fucking attached at hip with his woman. Why hadn't he left yet? _Russell's_ glares just made Edward what to punch the bastard's face in.

"I'm going to put Elizabeth to sleep." Winry announced as she picked up her daughter, who was having trouble keeping her eyes open. "Say goodnight to Granny, Mister Edward, and Mister Russell, Liz." She said, holding her daughter closely.

Ed smiled as Elizabeth mumbled a "nighty-night", her head not leaving the crook of Winry's neck.

With that, Winry ascended up the stair steps, and into her old bedroom where she would surely be putting her daughter to sleep with ease.

* * *

Moments passed, and the living room settled back into comfortable solitude, with Edward reading the latest edition of _Central Times _on the armchair. Apparently he still had a lot of catching up to do with Amestris. Winry was petting Den on the couch while Russell enjoyed a piece of Winry's apple pie. Ed guessed he had eaten the pie more than himself in the past couple of years, which was entirely _not_ fair. Pinako was by the door, just in time for Rose, Cody, and Al's arrival.

Edward looked up from the paper he was reading, and at the door, where little Cody stood. He was about the average size for a five or six-year-old, with dark olive skin, like Rose's. His hair was black, and slightly shaggy, almost reminding Ed of his haircut when he was Cody's age. It seemed that the kid had a permanent scowl plastered on his young face, and there was a white bandage below his left eye. Ed guessed it was from being involved in a fight.

It looked like Cody had decided to make the first person he saw, Pinako, his first victim.

"My, my, Cody. You've grown a lot since I've last seen you." Pinako remarked, but still had on an unamused look.

Cody allowed his mother to take off his heavy jacket before responding. "Man, you aren't dead _yet_? What are you, four-hundred years old?"

Pinako failed to respond, as if she was used to it, Ed snorted, holding in a large burst of laughter, and Rose had scolded, "Cody! Manners!"

By this time, Winry had stood up, looking somewhat unenthusiastic to greet her friend's child. "Cody," She smiled, but it was obviously staged, "How was your trip?"

Cody snorted, shrugging his shoulders. "S'alright, I guess. I had to sit next to a man that smelt like sweat on the train. I told him about the product, deodorant, and told him he should invest in some." And then he gave off a pretty disgusted look, "Yeah, it was alright until I got here, where I found _Al,_ over there, sucking my mom's face off."

Edward snorted again, trying with a great amount of effort to keep from laughing as he looked over at Al. His little brother's face had become infuriated, and Ed could have sworn he saw steam come out of his ears.

"You'll have to excuse my son," Rose apologized. "He just gets a little fowl around cold weather."

And that's when Cody spotted the new face, Edward, sitting in the living room.

"Who's the new old guy?" He asked, pointing his thumb in Ed's direction.

_OLD?! Why you little-_

The amusement in Ed's face had suddenly dropped with the quick insult that the kid had delivered.

Cody turned to the older Elric, his hands on his hips. "You're awfully small for an old guy." He mused.

"SMALL?!" Ed stood up quickly from his chair as he glared down at him, his teeth grinding. "YOU'RE NOT THE ONE WHO SHOULD BE TALKING, YOU LITTLE BRAT!" His voice roared.

Cody simply held up his hands in front of his chest and put on a devious smirk. "Woah, woah, woah, old man. Calm down, I don't want you to throw out your back or something."

"I'M NOT-" Ed started, but was cut off by a very high pitched and excited,

"Cody!"

Everyone turned their head to the top of the stair case to see Elizabeth standing there, smiling big, in her cute, pink night gown. Her hair was down, and slightly messy. She was still adorable, of course.

Liz made her way quickly, yet carefully, down the stairwell, where she ran to reach Cody, hugging him tightly. "I missed you!"

Edward wanted to pull her daughter away from the bully, afraid that the demon might say something to make her cry, but instead...

"Y...yeah." The tone in the little boy's voice had changed from as-a-matter-of-factly to quiet and embarrassed. Edward also noted that his cheeks were slightly red. He didn't make eye-contact with her, and put his hands deep into his pocket knowing full well that he had five adults' smiling faces directed toward him. "Here...I thought...I thought you might like this..." He said, pulling one of his hands out of his pockets which held a tiny giraffe plushy, but still refused to look her in the eye.

"Aww!" Elizabeth squealed, taking the giraffe into her hands. "Thanks, Co-Co, I like it a lot!"

"_Co-Co_?" Edward laughed. Oh, sweet revenge.

Cody's head snapped up to Edward, and to the other five adults around him, who were all snickering, before finally looking at Elizabeth. "Liz! I told you not to call me that!" He whined, his face was probably as red as it could get.

"Sorry," Elizabeth apologized before grabbing his hand. "Hey, lets go upstairs and play!" She suggested, already dragging Cody toward the stairs. He put on an 'irritated' look, but showed no resistance.

"Don't stay up too late!" Winry called before the two disappeared into the second level of the Rockbell home.

After a moment, Edward decided to speak.

"What the hell was _that_?"

"Oh, Cody has had a crush on little Elizabeth since he met her." Rose answered. "I swear, he would marry her if he had the chance."

"Hell _no_." Ed barked, shaking his head profusely. "Elizabeth will never have anything to do with that boy. Or _any_ boys for that matter. Nope, none. She doesn't need any boy dragging her down if she's going to be a genius like her dad." He announced, pointing his thumb at his chest. "And Winry, she's going to an all-girl's school when she's older, no discussion."

Winry rolled her eyes, "Whatever you say, _genius_."

"Don't fight it, Ed." Rose pleaded, "Liz keeps Cody under control."

_Isn't that YOUR job?_ Ed thought, angrily.

"Plus," Rose added, "If you did anything to keep Cody away from Liz, you'd be his worst enemy." She practically shivered at the thought.

"Whatever, I'm going to bed." Ed growled as he began making his way toward the staircase.

"Wait," Pinako stopped him.

"Not until we make some sleeping arrangements. We have a lot of guests tonight, after all."

* * *

"Well isn't _this _just great." Ed groaned, squirming to try and make himself comfortable.

"Just deal with it, Ed. And stop moving!"

"Why don't you just go sleep with Russell. I'm sure he'd be more than happy to let you into bed with him." Ed grumbled, pulling the sheets over his body.

To top off being stuck sleeping with Winry, who wanted nothing to do with him at the moment, in a small, twin-sized bed, Pinako had kept all the windows in the house open, making the house just as cool on the inside as it was on the outside. Russel had taken Ed's usual bed in Al's room. Rose, who usually slept in Winry's room while the blonde wasn't visiting, was sleeping on the couch with her son, and Liz was sleeping deeply on the small cot in Winry's room, only a few feet away from the couple.

"Shut-up, Ed." Winry growled, pushing herself away from the bed's edge to prevent her from tumbling off while she slumbered, but found herself unable to move anymore as her back met Ed's chest.

Ed squeaked in surprise, and she found that he was invitingly warm, but she still complained. "Ed, quit hogging the bed." She nudged his body with her own, only for him to respond with another squeak.

"I can't." Ed sounded almost embarrassed for some reason. "My back is against the wall."

"Well, too bad." Winry replied, pushing her body back more.

Edward let out a hiss.

_Oh god, she has no idea what she's doing to me._

She was dressed in her tiny, thin nightgown, which looked as if it would be practically transparent if exposed to the slightest bit of moisture. He could see the side of one of her breast's through her nightgown's armhole, and if he picked up his head, just a little, maybe, just maybe, he could see...

"Edward, I said stop moving!" Winry demanded quietly and Ed dropped his head to the pillow quickly.

She sighed with satisfaction as she nuzzled he head into the softness of her pillow and adjusted her body so that she was comfortable.

But Edward had hissed again.

_God damn it. Why does __**she**__ get to move?_

Every time her body nudged his, her bottom would grind against his hips.

"Somethin' wrong?" She asked him wearily, not bothering to turn over to look at him.

"N-nope!" Edward lied, frantically trying to think of something to calm his body down.

But it was too late.

"Ed, what's _that?_" She asked, pressing her bottom back against something hard that had all of the sudden began to poke at her.

Edward swallowed a moan before answering. "Wh-what?"He knew all too well what she was referring to.

"That." She said quizzically, grinding her hips back at him, harder than before. Maybe it was one of his automail pieces sticking out? Or something.

He took in a deep breath once she did.

_Does she seriously not know_?

Ed guessed it was a good thing that she hadn't figured it out. She would dub him a pervert, and perhaps even take up Ed's suggestion of having her sleep with Russell. Like hell he was going to let that happen.

There was a brief moment of silence, causing the blush on Ed's face to dissolve, but that was until Winry spoke.

"Oh."

"What?" Edward asked. Yeah, he was caught. Ed cringed and prepared himself for one of her wrenches.

She turned her head over to look at him, Ed noticing her face was flushed. Winry looked into his eyes, studying his dilated pupils and intense heat that lit them up.

Ed swallowed and looked away from her, feeling dramatically more embarrassed of his his situation. "Well, you kept moving." He blamed her.

Winry glared had him, but not saying anything as she turned over so her body faced him.

Ed watched her, stumped as to why she was giving him an angry look, yet not hitting him over the head with one of her tools.

And he was even more perplexed when her hand snaked between the two, under the covers, and disappeared into the depths of Ed's boxers.

"Win-!" Ed gasped at this pleasant surprise. "-ry..." The ending to her name spilled out from his lips in a low moan as she stroked the head of his manhood with her thumb. He could feel goosebumps begin to breakout all over his skin.

"I'm still mad at you." She finally said. And she knew Ed wasn't completely happy with her either,but she had a feeling that performing these activities while angry, would make them all the more satisfying.

"I know," He responded in a groan, squeezing his eyes shut and biting his lip as she began to move her hand up and down his length slowly. "You're so hot when you're mad, Win." He admitted.

His remark made her tighten the grip on his cock, and he hissed once again, spreading both his flesh, and automail toes apart. Finally, Ed opened his eyes and looked into hers.

And God, did he like what he found swimming in those deep, blue eyes of hers.

Winry's eyes were burning, no, scorching with lust and desire, and nothing in the world could have kept him from pulling her into a deep, passionate kiss. His tongue had practically tackled hers, instantly winning domination.

And as he kissed her, he felt his hips moving with the rhythm of her hand as if they had a mind of their own.

He groaned, grunted, and rocked his hips until he was just about at his peak. With what self-control he had left, Edward grabbed her wrist and retreated her hand from his boxers.

"Stop." He said, breathlessly, the two's eyes suddenly meeting. Powerful lust meeting powerful lust.

"What?" She inquired, almost disappointed that she didn't get the job finished. "Don't you want-"

"Of course I do," Ed interrupted, but didn't say anything else as he let his actions explain.

Winry lifted an eyebrow as he nudged her to turn back over until she was in the position she had initially laid in.

Edward had begun to drag his fingers along her hip, carrying the smooth fabric of her nightgown with them, until the rim was about her waist. Fluidly, he lowered his hand to her hip again, his thumb hooking under the hem of her panties and pulling them down to her knees. Ed had done the same with his boxers and once Ed had placed his hand on her inner thigh and lifted her leg up, Winry grasped her sheets and began to pant lightly with anticipation.

"Oh God, Ed."

Now pleased with her encouraging reaction, he could practically feel the heat pouring from her core as he positioned himself just right. And just before he made the next move, he whispered hotly in her ear,

"Are you ready?"

Oh, how she had never been more ready for something in her life. The previous times that she had engaged in these kinds of behaviors with Ed, she had ignored her own throbbing sensation of want and need for some sort of sensual attention. Here Ed was, being as impulsive as he could possibly get...

And yet...

"Nnn..." She responded.

"What?"

"N-n-" She was finding it harder than she thought to decline. "...No." She finally sighed out.

"What do you mean, no?!" Ed whispered loudly, sitting up on his knees and looking down at the blonde mechanic. "I swear, Win, this better not be some kind of cruel revenge. I'm about to_ explode_ here." He whined.

"No, it's not that," Winry said, pulling up her panties before sitting up as well. "It's just that...I don't feel right..."

"What the _hell_ are you talking about?"

"I don't feel right with Liz in the room."

_Liz?_ Edward had completely forgot about the young toddler, who was sleeping, innocently, on the other side of Winry's bedroom.

"So what? She's sleeping." Ed tried to reason with her, but covered himself up as he also became somewhat paranoid.

"What if she wakes up?" Winry argued.

Edward let out a quiet groan of frustration. "Well, is there somewhere else we can go?" Any man would have been persistent at Ed's level of arousal.

"All the rooms are taken."

_Dammit._

The couple sat in disappointed silence for a moment before Edward thought of something genius.

"What about your workshop? The one outside?"

Winry thought about it for a moment. It was a smart suggestion, and being outside would take away all the worries of being too loud.

"But it's so _cold_." Winry whined.

"Oh, c'mon, Win." He complained, taking both of her hands into his. "Please? Just this once. For me, Win?" Ed begged.

How could she possibly say no to that?

Ed had never begged for anything. Nothing. It was completely out of his character, but Winry guessed that sex was powerful enough to even make Ed plead.

"Oh, alright." Winry agreed, and before she could even state the terms she had come up with, Ed had already bolted out of the room.

* * *

Ed was down the stairs by the time Winry caught up with him, but, strangely, he was halted, in front of the kitchen's doorway. The light was on, signaling that someone was up, besides the two.

Once Winry saw who Edward was staring at, her facial expression matched his: Disgusted.

A repugnant voice broke the cold silence, "Just where do you two think you're going?"

Cody, munching on a green apple with a mischievous grin, revealing one of his front teeth missing, stood in the in front of the kitchens doorway.

"I think the question is, 'What's a little brat like you still doing up?' Isn't it past your bed time?" Ed snapped back, smartly.

"You guys were going to play outside. I'm coming, too. It's boring here at night."

Obviously, Cody didn't know the kind of _play_ the adults were about to engage in.

"_Fuck no_." Ed scoffed before making a rather unwise decision. He lifted up his flesh foot, and pressed it against the young boy's forehead. Gently, but with enough force to push him down onto his bottom.

Cody sat on the kitchen floor in surprise, before looking up at Winry and Ed with a deathly scowl. "You're going to regret that, old man." He threatened.

"Oh yeah? What are you going to do about it, brat?"

"Ed, maybe we should just-" Winry started.

A sharp cry exploded into the quiet home, causing Den to begin barking loudly. Winry covered her ears and looked down at the source of the noise, Cody, and then to Ed, who looked frantic.

"What's wrong?!" Rose called from the couch, where she was sitting up and looking worriedly at her son.

"I dunno," Ed lied, having to practically yell over the child's screaming voice. "Winry and I came down here for a snack, and he just started wailing."

"Oh." Rose said, as if it happened all the time, "Hush, now, Cody."

And just like that, Cody's mouth clamped shut. Edward glared down at the little monster, who was wiping away his fake tears from his eyes.

From upstairs, a light turned on, and an exasperated Al came out of his room.

"Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, Al, everything's fine." Ed assured him.

Shortly after, Russell followed Al to the steps, looking groggy.

"Is everything okay?" The tall, blond man asked.

"YES, EVERYTHING'S JUST FUCKING DANDY."

So much for his and Winry's romantic plan.

"C'mon Edward, let's just go back upstairs," Winry advised, pulling Ed, who didn't lose his glare with Cody as he walked, along with her. He had nearly lost it when the punk had inconspicuously stuck his tongue out at Ed.

* * *

Just when Ed thought the night couldn't get any worse, when the two had returned to Winry's room, a sniffling Elizabeth stood in front of the door, holding her giraffe tightly.

"What's wrong with _her_?" Ed groaned.

Winry made her way toward Liz and scooped her up into her arms. "It's nothing. Liz just gets a little upset when she's woken up."

"Oh."

"You want to sleep with mommy?" Winry said quietly to her daughter, and the little girl nodded her head.

"What?" Ed was seriously about to explode with irritation. "Where the hell am I supposed to sleep?"

Winry looked at the cot sympathetically making Ed want to pull his hair out.

The whole night had made a complete turn, and his plans of finally getting laid after almost five years backfired in his face.

Edward sighed and began preparing the cot for him to sleep in. It wasn't just that he was mad about losing his chance to have sex with Winry, though that was a big chunk of it, the fact that she was willing to accommodate him made it seem like, in a way, she was forgiving him.

And as he laid down that night on the uncomfortable cot, his arms tucked behind his head, he realized something:

After everything Edward had put Winry through, there was something she finally deserved.

* * *

As you may have noticed, this chapter was a lot long than my others. It probably had something to do with our newest, lovable character! Haha, I loved creating that little monster, Cody.

So tell me what you thought! Thanks for reading!


End file.
